The Knight of the First Order
by Nequam95
Summary: Kylo Ren embarks on the darkness of space to destroy the New Jedi Order. At the peak of the assault, Gray Jedi Mira Wess finds herself in a desperate situation.
1. Chapter 1

Important notes:

 **The story** intends to tell a unique story between the _Return of the Jedi_ and _The Force Awakens_. It **relies heavily on EU content.** I have to give you an AU warning, since there can be contradictions between the abolished content of the EU and the new content that now counts as canon.

I wrote this story to be readable without the knowledge of any other content, but I believe I have to mention my other story which serves as a **prequel** to this one. You can find it among my stories, named as The Fall of a Noble Soul.

It does **not required** to understand this story, although, if you do get lost, please read into to it, as it gives further depth to the upcoming events and gives more details behind the goals and reasoning of the opposing characters.

That's all I had to say about the story. I hope you will enjoy reading it :)

 **Update:**

After the newest movie – The Last Jedi –, this story became **completely AU**.

* * *

 **The Knight of the First Order:**

 **Chapter I: The Beginning of the End**

Kylo Ren stood at the bridge of the Finalizer. He seemed like the harbinger of death himself, as his personal warship scorched through the fabric of Hyperspace, getting closer to its target minute by minute. They were going to war, and he had no doubt about the success of the assault – the bravest men of The First Order and fiercest warriors of the Knights of Ren were with him after all.

The time has come to destroy the Jedi once and for all.

"Arriving at Odessen in thirty seconds," General Hux broke the glorious silence of the coming battle.

Nobody knew where the New Jedi Order was hiding from their enemies. Almost nobody. Kylo knew exactly where to find them.

Snoke tried to convince him for a long time about the assault of Odessen. And now, a decade after Luke and his parents abandoned him, Kylo decided to take revenge for everything. He couldn't be part of the New Jedi Order, thus no one could have a place among their ranks. From now on, the only thing the Jedi could be part of is an ashen crater over the remains of the Jedi Temple.

The Finalizer exited Hyperspace, casting a giant shadow at Odessen. The navigators did their job right, and the Temple was in firing range of almost every turbolaser battery they've got. They were ready to fire long before they arrived, and now the giant cannons were waiting to obliterate everything in their way.

Despite the charged turbolasers, for now on, the plan demanded their silence. Supreme Leader Snoke ordered Kylo to kill Rey, which posed a problem. Although his master was willing to burn the entire galaxy in order to murder the child, Emperor Thrawn wanted to save her from all possible harm.

In the old days, the two masters of war worked together, but now the Empire was fractured into two. Thrawn lead the remnant of the Empire, while Snoke formed the First Order, a new Empire that aimed to replace the other. The two states were opposed by their nature, thus Thrawn and Snoke danced at the edge of open war ever since the formation of the First Order. The Republic did nothing against them – they didn't think they could pose a threat to the force that brought down the mighty Empire. Their ignorance created a time of relative peace, and now, this peace was about to die.

Kylo wanted to bring war upon the entire galaxy. He served the First Order for a long time, but now, guided by a dreadful vision, he decided to save Rey, even though this meant betraying Snoke, and leaving Thrawn as his only ally.

He strode on a dangerous path, but it was all right. He loved the danger. And thus, he took the second step on the road of the next Galactic War.

"Tell the Jedi to give me the girl. If they don't obey, we will erase the Temple from the face of Odessen," he said, turning towards Hux. The Jedi knew he would open fire as soon as they gave him Rey, but they would do it anyway. They were weak in this sense, but only in this sense, Kylo knew this very well.

"Sir, we have a Republic warship on intercept course!" Hux said. He sounded surprised, yet he had little fear in his voice.

Red laser bolts stormed the front of the Finalizer. Kylo expected a whole battlefleet, but it was only one Carrack-class light cruiser. It had no chance against the might of a star destroyer. Kylo admired their determination; in an ideal case, he would take his time destroying that ship, but now he couldn't afford the delay.

"Get around it! We have to keep the Jedi under our guns, they would flee otherwise," he answered. The cruiser made their job difficult, yet he could still make a victory out of this. "Deploy fighter squadrons one to three, they will have to keep the enemy ship occupied until we deal with the Jedi!"

"Sir, that ship has powerful anti-fighter cannons. We would send our pilots to their doom!" Hux snapped, shaking his head.

"Indeed, we will," Kylo nodded. Hux seemed shocked by his plan; maybe he thought the First Order was different from the Empire in this regard. And it was: even Emperor Thrawn handled his pilots better than Kylo Ren who simply ignored the losses.

He wanted to get Rey, and then he wanted to get rid of the Luke's Jedi Order. Nothing would stop him from his goal, especially not that sluggish cruiser gliding towards them in the darkness of space.

"Sir, the enemy ship changes its course," Hux reported. "They want to block our way to the Temple. At this rate, we either kiss goodbye to the Jedi or risk collision with the cruiser."

"Then we can spare those pilots after all." Kylo smiled under his mask. "Keep our course towards the Temple! Direct all energy in the forward shields and batteries! We will have to soften the cruiser up; otherwise we would lose half of the ship."

"Sir? You would risk collision?" The general seemed more terrified than ever.

"We are not risking it. We will go straight into them."

Kylo was surrounded with shocked glances from his officers. They didn't get the big picture, they didn't see his vision, and thus they didn't know anything about the importance of Rey. By the time they would fight it out with the cruiser, the girl would be gone – alongside with half of the Jedi Oder. That's not what he embarked for, thus it was unacceptable.

The cruiser did everything in order to halt them, but Kylo was relentless. As the giant body of the star destroyer got closer to its prey, the enemy ship turned off everything but its shields. Kylo was expecting it, and now the forward batteries of the Finalizer worked at full capacity. The magnificent cannons launched a deadly storm of laser bolts towards their prey, shaking the cruiser to its core. The enemy's shield faltered, and then it ceased to exist.

By this time, the Finalizer was only a few meters away. Hell went lose aboard the star destroyer, as the giants collided in the darkness of space. The large, but elegant body of the Carrack-cruiser cracked into two, and then it exploded, cutting through the Finalizer's shields, and ripping parts out of its magnificent body.

Sudden and strong quakes went through the bridge. Cables came loose, terminals caught on fire as the lights started to blink around Kylo. Some died, some were injured, but he stood there like nothing happened.

"We are through," Hux said. He seemed to be calm, yet deep inside he prayed for his mere life.

The molten pieces of the enemy ship glided near both sides of the Finalizer. Kylo have seen the damage, the star destroyer ended in a fiery line instead of the glorious top of a triangle. They were at no fighting condition, but they didn't have to combat anything at this point.

Odessen was now defenseless.

"Repeat the message. The Jedi will listen to us now," he said calmly. He had little reason to be angry; everything went in his way.

"The Jedi made their move already, sir," Hux shook his head. "Two light freighters are escaping from the Jedi Temple. They seem identical."

"Then we shall get them both."

"Negative sir, with the current state of the ship, there is no way that we can get both of them."

The enemy made him choose. The girl was in priority, thus the solution was obvious. Kylo reached out with the Force, searching both ships for the young girl. He felt a strong presence in the first one; it could have been Rey, or perhaps it was her mother, Mara Jade. Certainly, there was someone in there, close to Luke Skywalker. The second ship seemed to be empty. Someone made sure he would feel nothing in it. And that someone was close to him in power, or even his equal in terms of might and destruction. Kylo knew Luke wasn't here. But then who could it be? Kyle Katarn? Jarrus Kanan? Or maybe the infamous Ahsoka Tano?

Whoever did this, Kylo now knew where to find Rey.

"Shoot down the second one! Rey will be fine, but her defenders won't be so fortunate."

* * *

Mira Wess found herself in a desperate situation. The Finalizer shot her ship out of the sky, sending her, Rey and half a dozen Jedi into certain doom. Mira was strong with the Force, but even she could only protect two persons from the destruction. She choose Rey and herself.

The light freighter hit the ground, carving a long path on the ground before it would stop in the ashen ground. Mira took the six-year-old girl out of the ship, arriving into a black field, covered with nothing but rain, mud and debris.

She heard a threatening sound, and the Finalizer appeared on the horizon as the fiery mark of doom. The damaged ship halted its body towards the Jedi Temple, opening fire with its remaining cannons. Dozens of Jedi were in the elegant, brown building made of stones, but half a minute later, Mira would feel nothing but pain and destruction.

Looking at the burning ruins of the Temple, she still didn't understand how they could find them. She always suspected Thrawn would sniff them out, but that ship clearly belonged to the First Order. They could hide from the Sith, they could do that ever since the Great Jedi purge.

But then how did they find them?

Maybe Ariss did something? Mira shook her head. Her stepdaughter surely had some unique abilities, but there was no way, she would lead their enemies in here. Even if it was possible, she went off with Luke and Katarn on a mission two weeks ago.

Ships appeared on the clouded sky. Fighters glided in the air, and a large, grey shuttle descended from the hangar bay of the damaged star destroyer. Mira felt a presence she almost forgotten. It was Ben. Now it became clear what happened. He betrayed them, leading the First Order right into their doorstep.

Mira gritted her teeth. Most Jedi would restrain from anger, but she was Jedi only in name. The Light Side abandoned her soul a long time ago, and at one point, even the Dark Side turned its back on her. But now she gathered her anger, she intended use it well in the upcoming battle.

"Aunt Mira... What's happening?" Rey asked frightened.

"Hide," she said, pointing towards the wreckage lying on the wet ground. The hot metal could easily burn her, but Ben's lightsaber was more of concern in the present situation. The girl could still try to run of course, but then Mira wouldn't be able to hide her presence any longer.

Rey nodded, and went towards a large piece of metal, hiding behind it as much as possible.

"What about you?" she asked.

"I intend to kill them all."

Kylo could send anyone to kill her, but he went himself. Surrounded by the Knights of Ren, he had little to fear from the Jedi meditating near the wreckage. Truth is Mira felt the same. She didn't fear death, she only cared about Ariss, and she was in safety.

Right now, fighting to her death seemed a better idea than ever.

Sitting on the ground, Mira knew what she is going to see when she opened her eyes. Kylo Ren stood in front of her, holding his lightsaber in his muscular hand; his warriors were all around the place, making victory a distant, but desirable possibility.

"So the little Ben came back after all?" Mira said with a smile on her face. She didn't get up, there was no need to rush.

"I know you. You fought my grandfather," Kylo said, as he ignited his lightsaber.

"And I lived to tell the tale," she nodded. Snoke's apprentice left her little choice, but to take action. She got up from the ground, and activated her lightsaber that rested in her hand. Only one of them will walk out of this field alive, the brilliant light of the green saber made that clear for all.

"Don't let your hopes up. You are getting old, Mira, and I'm just as strong as my grandfather was," Kylo said, taking a step forward.

"Age is a just number," she answered. She was born a long time ago, but thanks to the Force, she only looked thirty years old. Her pale face seemed surprisingly young for her age, and her slender body was as fit as it could be. Nor her long, brown hair or her green eyes indicated anything from her real age. At least not of her knowing. The mere thought of getting old insulted Mira beyond measure.

"I can feel your anger. Good, this means a challenge," he said as the Knights of Ren stood aside. Kylo was challenged to a one on one fight, and the Knights knew better, than breaking the old tradition.

"Challenge? Maybe for your men. It will be rather difficult to get your remains out of the mud after I'm done with you."

Mira reversed her grip on the lightsaber as she assumed attack stance. Kylo raised his triple-bladed sword in front of him, his yellow eyes looked through the light of the unstable blade. Then he moved his weapon to the side, and marched into battle.

Lightsabers collided in the air, as the combatants ran to glory or certain doom. Mira was as fierce as ever, she struck his enemy with fast and barely predictable attacks, and leapt to the side as Kylo tried to make a counter attack. From here, she could cut her enemy into two, but he knew this as well. The son of Han Solo didn't give up so easily: he pushed Mira aside with the Force as soon as possible.

The woman didn't stop until she crashed into a large piece of hot metal. She protected herself with her powers, and moments after the push, Mira was ready for the next round. Kylo was already on his way, striking down at his enemy in the first possible moment. But she was faster than him, and leapt to the side from the red blade. She could end the fight here, and she had every reason to do so. Gripping her lightsaber hard in her hand, Mira cut into the flesh of the famous Kylo Ren.

The green blade caused him unimaginable pain. He barely noticed that the cross-guard of his saber halted the main force of the attack. A few more inches, and Kylo would have surely been dead, but this way, he was only injured. Fueled by pain and anger, the Knight of Ren jolted back from the saber that made a hole in his flesh and skin. He looked towards his warriors, but they did nothing.

It was a one on one fight, and Mira knew this perfectly.

"And now, Ben, you die," she said, giving way to her anger. She approached her foe ready for the final blow, he was wounded, scared and vulnerable. It wouldn't take more to kill him then a well-placed strike.

Mira saw into him through the Force. Kylo was barely conscious, but then the impossible happened: he felt it. His grandfather called out to him, giving him unprecedented strength. The pain was gone within an instant, his wounded muscles worked better than ever. The Force was clear to him, and Mira knew it as well.

She struck with a fierce blow toward her foe. Expecting him to dodge it, the counterattack was a sudden and fatal surprise to her. Kylo struck the lightsaber out of her hand with impossible strength, and then, within an instant, he cut through her stomach with his lightsaber.

Mira couldn't believe it, she was defeated. She collapsed on the ground; the saber cut deep into her flesh, using the Force, she could barely keep her guts within her broken body. As a last resort, she tried to crawl away from Kylo, but he quickly stepped on her, making it impossible to move forward.

And then another target emerged.

"Aunt Mira!" Rey cried out, seeing her defeat.

The young girl ran out of the cover of the wreckage, Kylo grabbed her with the Force a moment later, sealing her fate.

"Don't you dare to hurt her!" Mira cried out.

"Don't worry, I'm not going to kill her," Kylo answered, she looked shocked by his words. "I know about Ariss, your step-daughter. I know Snoke wants to replace me with that aberration. I can't stop her now, but with Rey, and the help of Thrawn, I will have all the help I need to kill her."

"Over my dead body!" she answered with anger in her voice. She tried to get up, but it was impossible to do so in her condition.

"I won't kill you either. You are her mother after all. You can provide me with invaluable information about Ariss. And you will help me willingly."

"Never!"

"Oh, yes, you will. Time to return to the Dark Side, Mira. Or should I call you Lady Void?"

* * *

Thank you for reading the first chapter! I hope you enjoyed it :)

I also have to say thank you for those who took a look at this chapter before it was released! I'm still searching for beta readers, and I'm willing to work with stories of similar length in return.

If you liked the story, don't forget to leave some feedback! It might take some time to release the next chapter. I'm a turtle in terms of writing and releasing continuous content - but be assured, it will be continued.

Thank you again for your time and attention!

May the Force be with you :)


	2. Chapter 2

_The second chapter is here. It's a short one, hopefully the third chapter will be longer :)_

 _I hope you will enjoy it!_

* * *

 **Chapter II:  
** **The Belly of the Beast**

Mira woke up with fear. She was laying on a table, her arms and legs were bound by metal. She felt dizzy; there was no pain, only dread. She opened her eyes slowly, and looked around in the alien place.

She was surrounded by grey walls, empty beds and droids. It was the medbay of a starship, possibly a star destroyer. At first, she thought it was on the Finalizer, but that ship was a wreckage. Its medbay would be a damaged mess filled with the wounded.

They must have transferred her to another ship. But where? And for what reason?

She found it difficult to concentrate. She reached for the Force to guide her mind. It helped at first, but then she felt a presence, a twisted and dreadful presence. It was similar to Kylo's, although it seemed weaker, burdened with pain, loss and desperation. And _he_ was closing in.

The door opened, Mira turned towards her captor. He was a short, yet well-built man. He had yellow eyes, dark hair, a long beard and a scar that went through his face. He changed much since their last encounter, yet she recognized him within an instant.

"Lord Ezra," she said, locking eyes with him. "I could say I'm flattered, but I'm not."

"Mira, little Mira," he smiled. "I hear you became a Jedi. Isn't it adorable?"

"I'm no more Jedi than you are Sith." Ezra wanted nothing else than the Darth title, she knew that very well. At this point, Snoke was the last remaining Sith, and he didn't give the name easily. Kylo could become a Darth, but Ezra? He had no chance whatsoever.

"You have a mouth on you. Good," he answered with a grin on his face. "And here was I thinking, you would be begging for mercy. It will be a privilege to break you. Perhaps I will let you serve me."

He leaned close to Mira.

"Left leg," she told him.

"What?" he asked.

"I will cut off your left leg first. Then the other one. Your arms will be next. And then your balls. Then I will leave you to rot."

"Oh, I missed these deep conversations," he sighed. "You have no means to escape, darling. I have your lightsaber in a safe location. Even if you get out..."

"I will use yours," she added.

"Keep dreaming, little Mira. Keep dreaming," he said with confidence. Faked confidence, she sensed it. "I have a battle to win now, but I will start our first session as soon as it's finished."

A battle. This caught her attention. Whoever they fought, the chaos should present a chance to escape. Her injury could complicate things, although she had no idea about its severity. There were no pain, and strangely, she felt herself very much in one piece.

"With a hole in my body? That's grand," she said. The answer should give her the information she needed.

"Oh, we fixed that. We put some synthetic parts in you so your body would have less tissue to restore. This way you will be ready for me in no time. And you know me, everything for a good torture," he answered.

Synthetic parts... Mira wasn't a fan of cyborgs, but right now she could live with it. Assuming the battle is fierce enough, with those parts in her, she had a good chance to escape this ship.

"I can't wait then," she answered, curious about the upcoming fight. "I hope you will deal with them fast, so I could show you how pathetic your methods are."

"Don't worry, it will be done soon enough. Thrawn might be smart, but he has nothing against my ship."

"Thrawn?" she frowned.

It made sense why they were going with another ship. They couldn't fight him with the Finalizer, that ship couldn't even defeat a flock of space whales in its current condition. But why would take her here, when Kylo wanted to deal with her personally? Maybe he didn't. He had other plans with the girl, and he wanted to keep her far away from Rey.

It made sense, but she had time to worry about it later. Now she had to escape from the ship.

"This will be the end of the old man. And then you shall witness the end of yourself," Ezra told her, and then he walked out of the room.

The door closed behind him, and Mira started to smile. Ezra was confident in beating Emperor Thrawn, and she was sure about the opposite. This ship will be a wreckage soon, he will make sure of that. And while he deals with the ship, Mira will have everything she needs for a successful escape.

* * *

Emperor Thrawn stood at the bridge of the _Chimaera_. He ran his fingers over his neck, feeling the scar left behind by the latest assassination attempt. Snoke did everything in his power to remove him from the picture. Everything, except going to war with the remains of the once glorious Galactic Empire.

Now that seemed to change. He was sure about that, thus he commanded his flagship to hold defensive position over the mining colony. Anata Prime was rich in minerals, and lain at the verge of imperial space. For the First Order, it was the perfect target; and for Thrawn, it made the perfect place for a trap.

"Our scanners receive nothing so far, your grace," Captain Pellaeon broke the silence. For the most time, he was the one giving the orders on the bridge. Thrawn came rarely, he was either busy with politics or with the restoration of the shattered Imperial Fleet.

"They will come," Thrawn answered. The Captain thought they came here for nothing. The First Order would never attack them, not with the Republic on their doorstep.

Thrawn thought otherwise. He was certain about the assault. The First Order will come, and they well be ready for them. They _are_ ready for them.

"Sir, enemy ship on our sensors!" The frightened voice came from the Captain. The enemy star destroyer arrived right in front of them. As expected. "It's the _Pillar of Destruction_ , your grace, Lord Ezra's personal warship."

It came alone, armed to the teeth, ready to take on the mining colony. It had no escort, and neither did the _Chimaera_. The mining colony had some defenses, although nothing comparable with the firepower of a modern star destroyer. For better or worse, they could only rely on their own firepower.

"Your grace, we have no chance against that ship!" Pellaeon protested. "We are..."

"Outgunned, outmanned and outmatched," Thrawn continued. "Lord Ezra has every reason to strike us down."

"Our shields can't defend from that kind of firepower. Not for long."

"Two minutes, three at most," he nodded, touching his scar again. "As I said, they have no reason to walk away from this encounter."

And they didn't. The _Pillar of Destruction_ came closer and closer. Cannons pointed at the _Chimaera_ , fighters launching from the hangar by the dozen.

"The enemy star destroyer is on intercept course! Your grace, we have to retreat!" Pellaeon raised his voice in disbelief.

"Quite the contrary. We hold position here, and show our teeth. The _Chimaera_ is old, Captain, yet far from obsolete." He seemed calm, dangerously calm. And deep inside, he was just as relaxed.

He had a plan. And for now, everything went according to it.

* * *

 _Thank you for reading this chapter! I hope you enjoyed it as much as I enjoyed writing it! :)_


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter III:**  
At the Hands of Thrawn

As the battle commenced, Mira hoped to see the _Pillar of Destruction_ burn up in flames. Slight tremors shook the medbay as the ship's main cannons hammered the _Chimaera_ with incredible power, yet she felt no trace of incoming fire from the older _Star Destroyer._ Thrawn had to turn the tide of the battle, otherwise she would be stuck here for the rest of her short and extremely painful life.

She felt a strange presence in the Force. A man was approaching the medbay, he was angry, hopeful and oddly tenacious. There was no way he could be Ezra, yet she had no knowledge about another Force-user walking around the ship.

As the door opened, she was astonished to see Kyle Katarn, one of the last Jedi left after the assault. The tall, gray-haired man stepped into the room with haste, briefly examining the wound on her stomach.

"You okay?" he asked.

"Took you long enough," she nodded with a bright smile on her face. She didn't think anyone would come to the rescue after all that happened.

"I could go away, if you want," Kyle said jokingly. He walked to her bed, using the Force to unlock the straps that held her in place. By the time Mira sat up in bed, the man handed an old lightsaber to his friend. "That's the only one I could find. I hope it will do."

Mira quickly took the lightsaber in her hand. It belonged to her long gone friend, Noeya Adane. This was the moment when the euphoria of the rescue wore off, plunging her back to reality.

"What about Ariss?" she shot the hard question. The girl was supposed to be on a mission with him and Luke, yet she didn't feel neither of their presence in the Force.

"She is doing fine. I put her down at the regroup position with Luke. We will get back to them after we are done here," he answered, and walked out of the room, abandoning their conversation.

Mira followed the older Jedi, and quickly stopped him when he took wrong turn.

"The hangar is that way. I memorized the schematics," she said, pointing towards the other direction. There were no guards in sight yet, Kyle must have made one hell of a distraction during the battle.

"I want to teach that kid a lesson," Kyle answered.

"Wouldn't recommend it," Mira darted. "He is up against Thrawn," she added, although the course of the battle didn't change much during the conversation. The _Pillar of Destruction_ pounded its target without facing any resistance whatsoever. At this rate, it was only a question of time before the _Chimaera's_ shields would give in.

"So that's the ship he is chasing," Kyle answered. His face froze for a moment.

"Chasing?" Mira asked. Why would Thrawn let himself being chased? It made no sense to her, despite the fact she had been in numerous battles over the years.

"Of course, the nebula," Kyle gasped. "The _Chimaera_ is heading for the cluster. There must be a lot of ships waiting in there. How could these guys get fooled so easily?"

"Not our problem," Mira stated. "We have to get out of here, before those ships burst out of the nebula."

"Good idea," he nodded, finally agreeing to her idea.

The two of them made a run for it towards the hangar bay. Mira continuously scanned her environment with the Force, yet she felt no resistance in their way. The more distance they made, the more worried she became. By the time they reached the hangar bay's thick door in the middle of the corridor, she was certain of the trap.

"Sure you want to head in?" she asked, as they both stopped before the entrance.

"The ship is on the other side. I'm not losing it again," he answered. She let the word _again_ slide for the time being.

"He is on the other side with at least a dozen soldiers," Mira snapped. If Ezra was waiting for them, their chances of beating him grew thinner by the second.

"Twenty, by my guess," Kyle added. "You are not scared, are you?"

"I'm just making sure you could handle the heat," she answered, disguising her fear. Things have changed since Kylo Ren had defeated her. Death was assured at that moment, but now, in the thrill of the rescue, she hoped to live more than ever.

"Me? What's the matter with you?" he asked, showing serious concern about her.

"If you are ready, I'm ready" she nodded finally, overcoming the numbing fear nested in her spine. She wondered how Kyle could do this so smoothly. Both of them remembered Malachor, and both of them know how many times she saved him that day. Yet Kyle never seemed to acknowledge the danger they were in, still being the reckless hero she had known him to be.

"Okay then, let's teach that kid what it means to be a Jedi," Kyle answered, and opened the thick door.

They stepped into the hangar bay, facing Ezra and the two dozen stormtroopers surrounding him. Two AT-STs stood in the middle of the room, the Moldy Crow was laying behind them, safe distance from any boarding attempt.

"Should have expected you, Kyle. You always poke your nose into matters that has nothing to do with you," Ezra stated, griping his lightsaber firmly in his hand.

"What can I say? It's a hobby of mine."

"A hobby that can easily get you killed, alongside with your friend. You are a reckless fool, if you think you can always escape your fate," he answered with a wide smile on his dreadful face.

"Cut the shit, we know what's going to happen here," Mira spat with anger, sweeping their surroundings with the Force. The two AT-STs were more than a match for them, and the legion of stormtroopers didn't help much either. Luckily, the guys sitting in the walkers had nothing to do with the Force, making it easy to hijack at least one of their vehicles.

"You either die, or you surrender," Ezra answered.

"Or we just kill you," Kyle stated.

The would-be Sith laughed out loud, not even remotely considering the possibility that he could lose. But Mira did, and by this time, she had full control over the walker standing at the right side of the hangar bay. She steered the machine's thick head over its counterpart, and blew it into pieces with a single shot.

"Kill them!" Ezra yelled at the sight of the shattered wreckage. But it was too late.

Mira turned the walker towards the stormtroopers, unleashing a deadly salvo of lasers at their foes. A dozen soldiers died within a single moment, the rest tried to flee, but they didn't have a chance to escape. By the time Ezra ignited his lightsaber, ready to strike her down, Kyle was prepared to deal with him. Mira couldn't have him risk his life, thus she turned the walker on Ezra, and opened fire.

The would-be Sith flew to the other side of the room. Mira launched herself towards the Moldy Crow, Kyle followed her after deflecting a shot with his lightsaber.

"Hurry up, or I'm taking that wreck alone!" she yelled, and ran even faster towards the ship's dark hull. A rocket clashed into the walker, ripping their greatest asset into burning pieces. The reinforcements had arrived.

The two Jedi raced to the ship with a dozen stormtroopers chasing after them. Mira looked back, hearing Kyle's rapid footsteps behind her. A shot glided through the air above her head, making her forget about everything but the Moldy Crow waiting at the other side of the hangar.

Another shot was fired at her, hitting the center of her back. She collapsed on the floor in pain, the lightsaber rolled out of her hand. She thought about how silly it was to die like this, getting shot by a stormtrooper, then everything went dark.

* * *

Mira woke up aboard the Moldy Crow. Her back ached just as much as the lightsaber's crude mark on her body, and that was a good thing. Kyle must have done everything in order to heal the wound, now there was nothing left but to wait for her body to finish the rest of the job. For the first time, escaping death was a good thing, although she had no idea why.

"So you were going to steal my ship, huh?" Kyle asked with a smile on his face, as he stepped into the room.

"Possibly," Mira nodded, and started to push herself up from the bed. She stopped in the last moment, realizing that nothing covered her upper body. "Could you turn away for a bit?" she asked firmly.

It took some time for Kyle to look away. Mira quickly put her light-brown shirt on, not minding the hole on its back, where her partner had to cut off the burned fabric in order to get it down. At least, this way, it didn't apply any pressure to the wound.

"You done?" Kyle asked with haste.

"Yeah," Mira nodded after a few seconds. "I guess we escaped by now. How long before we reach the rest of the group?"

"I wouldn't call it an escape," Kyle shook his head, and started off to the other side of the ship.

Mira followed him, the shot made her remember every step taken. She froze when they reached the window. The _Pillar of Destruction_ glided near the nebula, relentlessly pounded by the _Chimaera_ and two _Victory-class Star Destroyers_. No ship could protect itself from such a punishment, not even Ezra's personal warship. Its powerful shield failed in the midst of the battle. The thick hull took one deadly hit after the other, yet the battle was far from over. Top of the line TIE fighters fought alongside the dying beast, making their last stand around the giant. They outclassed the old models in every possible way, yet numbers paired with superior tactics seemed to win the day.

A small, triangular ship glided in the darkness of space at the other side of the battlefield. It was an _Immobilizer cruiser_ , Mira quickly recognized it by the large domes placed on the sides of the ship. The _Pillar of Destruction_ couldn't hope to escape, and at this distance, neither did they.

"You weren't out for long," Kyle commented.

"How are we going to get out of here?" she asked. For the first time in a long time, she felt hopeless.

"We could try to make a run for it, but I think this is exactly what Thrawn expects us to do," he answered, scratching his gray beard. "I figured I will just circle around until you wake up."

"Why?" she frowned. "Don't tell me you don't have a plan."

"I do, but I will need someone for the rear gun," he answered, glancing at the window for a second.

"Why is that?"

"Because we are going to blow that thing into pieces."

* * *

 _Thank you for reading this chapter! I hope you enjoyed it as much as I enjoyed writing it! :)_


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter IV:**  
Fight or flight

Mira felt her heart beating in her chest as the _Moldy Crow_ raced towards the midst of the battle. Handling the main gun, she was ready to give the Remnant the fight of their lives, but for now, at the tense moments of the approach, she had nothing else to do then to watch the giant warships tearing each other apart in the distance. The _Pillar of Destruction_ fought like a beast, spitting deadly projectiles at its foes from all possible directions. The _Chimaera_ 's shields flickered, but held, while both Victory's hull became exposed to the deadly blaze of lasers.

It was strange. The _Pillar of Destruction_ could easily destroy one of the vessels before its mighty hull would break into a heap of burning metal, yet its captain chose to concentrate fire on all three targets, negating the chance for a valiant defeat. Then, as an explosion erupted from the _Chimaera_ 's armoured belly, she realized what they were doing. The _Pillar of_ _Destruction_ went for the tractor beams. They were going to evacuate.

By the time the second ship's tractor beam was reduced to ash, dozens of escape pods and shuttles launched off from the doomed destroyer. Modern and obsolete TIE fighters danced around them, painting fire and lasers into the darkness of space.

Mira watched a black shuttle burst into flames, then she realized they nearly reached firing range. From then, it took only a mere second for Thrawn to dispatch a group of fighters to intercept them. Mira turned the gun towards the obsolete, yet effective beasts, expecting at least a dozen of them on their way.

"Uhm… Shouldn't there be more than four?" she asked in the intercom, as she gazed over the incoming threat.

"I guess they are busy," Kyle shrugged, keeping the ship on course.

"Or we are doing exactly what Thrawn expects us to do," she answered. They should have run for it when they had the chance. Yet, she had to admit, it felt good to do some damage for a change.

"If that would be the case, you seriously think we were still breathing?" Kyle asked through the microphone.

"Yeah, for a few minutes or so," she nodded, although they had very little time left for chatter.

Despite their small numbers, the TIE fighters meant business. As they reached firing range, Mira immediately pulled the trigger, blasting one the fighters into fiery pieces. The rest of them returned fire immediately, although none of their shots reached their target, thanks to Kyle's quick turn to the left.

As they green shots ran past them, Mira blasted another fighter into two, damaging a third one through the explosion. The pilot steered his craft away from the battlefield, but she turned the gun fast enough to intercept it.

"Why did you do that?" Kyle asked, knowing that the returning fighter posed little threat to them.

"They deserve it," Mira darted.

Green lasers shook the ship, as the last fighter finished his attack run, making minor damage to their shields. It took only a second for Mira to aim with the gun, and blast the fighter into two. The craft's right wing flew off into the darkness of space, the rest of it collided with _Chimaera_ 's side in the distance.

"They are gone," Mira nodded with a confident smile on her face. "What's the situation with the Interdictor?"

"It's not alone…" Kyle answered.

Mira froze as she saw the TIE fighters lunge from the other side of the cruiser. She could handle four of them, but there was no way they could take down twelve.

"Damn the bastard!" Mira raised her voice, as she prepared to open fire.

"Hang on tight! I have an idea," Kyle stated, keeping the _Moldy Crow_ firmly on its course towards certain doom.

"What are you thinking?" she asked, hoping that this time he would have an actual plan in mind.

"I'm putting all power to the aft deflectors," the man stated. "Once we passed them, try to keep them on our back."

"You mean, keep them off?"

"On! Keep them _at_ our back!" Kyle raised her voice, as the fighters reached them.

The twelve pilots opened seemingly as one. Katarn tried to evade all incoming fire with a quick turn to the side, but it did little good against the trained pilot's deadly routine. Only half of the lasers missed their target, the rest collided with their shield, shaking every part of the old ship.

"Few more shots and we are done for," Mira stated, as the enemy craft made U turn behind them. The fighters caught up with them like flies, ready to finish the job.

"I know, focus on the ones that stray away."

"Your funeral," Mira stated as she rolled her eyes. If Kyle was wrong, both of them would die, and he knew that very well.

After another bold turn, they were closing in on their target fast. The only difference was that this time the fighters were behind them instead of their front. As the pilots started to shoot at them once again, Kyle tried to do everything in order to avoid their lasers. As the reckless manoeuvres went on, Mira did as she was ordered to do, and focused fire on the stray fighters instead of the ones that meant the real danger.

They suffered a hit for every destroyed fighter. The _Moldy Crow_ shook vehemently through the rain of fire, making her hold on to the chair ever tighter. As she finished off the last stray fighter with a precise shot to its cockpit, the shields ceased to exist from the incoming lasers.

"Kyle!" Mira raised her voice.

"Hold on tight," he stated as he launched all of their rockets at the Interdictor.

Once the warheads were on their way, the _Moldy Crow_ took a sudden turn from their prey, dodging all incoming fire from the back. The rockets went through the Interdictor's shields within an instant, blowing its hull into molten pieces. By the time Mira could say "wow", the hail of fire reached the TIE fighters, obliterating them within a fraction of a second.

"Where did you get those rockets?" she asked, once she made sure there were no fighters chasing them.

"Let that be my secret," Kyle laughed from the cockpit. "The engines are ready. We will be in hyperspace in…" He fell silent, and Mira felt something strange in the Force as well. "A new ship is coming in… Wait, that's Kylo. What is he doing here?"

"And Rey," Mira stated, trying to recover from the shock.

"They just slipped to the other side. They can't see us, but... To be honest, I don't think I can walk away from this one."

"Me neither," she shook her head. "That bastard almost gutted me like a fish."

"Then it's decided," he answered, turning the shieldless ship towards the _Chimaera_.

"So what do we do? We are just going to ram them?"

"I've got a better idea."

* * *

Kylo Ren arrived moments after the devastating battle. His personal shuttle was nothing compared to the _Pillar of Destruction_ , yet he was confident about his chances of survival. If Thrawn truly treasured their alliance, he would make sure that his ship arrives in one piece to the _Chimaera_. If he wasn't, he would be already dead by now.

He took a glance at the _Pillar of Destruction'_ s burning wreckage from the cockpit, then he steered the shuttle towards the dark-grey star destroyer, standing viciously over the remains of superior foe. There was little reason to hail them, everything should unfold aboard the giant, where they could take the next step towards their ultimate goal.

Kylo took a deep breath, then looked at Rey, who spent most of the journey unconsciously on the floor. At first, he thought it would be imperative to keep her awake, but after she started to nag him, the knight immediately recognized the value in keeping her silent until they parted ways.

In most cases, he had little reason to feel sympathy towards his foes, yet some forgotten part of him felt compassion for the young girl. If it were up to him, Rey would be dead by now, however Thrawn's plan required her something far worse than death. Even so, it had to be done in order to serve the greater good. Kylo knew that, and thus, he continued his journey towards the _Chimaera_ 's wide hangar bay.

Something flickered on the sensors, he choose to ignore it. He kept the shuttle on course, getting inside the enormous ship, and landing it between two obsolete TIE fighters on the freshly cleaned floor. As the landing was completed, he dropped the landing pad, and continued to march out of the shuttle with the unconscious Rey on his shoulder.

He was surprised to see Thrawn on the outer side of the shuttle. The Chiss wasn't known for his impatience, yet he wanted to see him as soon as he possibly could do so. Something must have happened since their last contact. At first, Kylo thought about the battle, but the _Pillar of Destruction_ wouldn't mean a setback for them. Not for Thrawn.

"Well then, we have our secret weapon," The Chiss stated, looking at Rey with an expressionless face.

"Not much of a weapon at this point," Kylo shrugged, and put the girl to his hands from his shoulder. It was more comfortable to hold her in this manner.

"She is alive, and at our hands; for now, that's all what matters. She could make a far superior body for Tenebrae than anyone else. That makes her the perfect choice for our experiment," he answered, and started off towards the ship's interior.

Kylo followed him with firm steps.

"Assuming we can separate him from his current body," Kylo stated. It was one thing to kidnap Rey from the Jedi, but the murder of the Supreme Leader was another, far more dangerous task. And it was one surely to be handled by him.

"One thing at a time, Mr. Ben Solo, one thing at a time," he answered coldly.

Kylo remained silent. Once the _Chimaera_ reaches its new destination, they would be separated again, and he doubted the Chiss would tell him how he could overcome someone as powerful as Snoke.

By the time they reached the bridge, the knight still held his suspicions firmly in his mind. Thrawn stopped in the middle of the wide, narrow room. The obsolete chamber proved to be similar then what he was used to aboard the _Finalizer_. The personnel did everything they could to repair the damage they suffered during the fight, and, aside from the wreckages in front of them, everything seemed normal.

"Shouldn't have fought us this openly," Kylo shook his head.

"Quite the contrary. They attempted to invade us, and we pushed them back," he answered, taking a confident glance on the _Pillar of_ _Destruction_ 's wreckage.

"Do you have a mere idea about how many of these ships are still out there?"

"One less," Thrawn stated.

"It seems, you had your own share of losses," Kylo shrugged, glancing towards what left the Interdictor cruiser. It must have been a miracle to shoot out the Star Destroyer before it could escape from the system.

"Actually, that was done by our new guests," he answered.

"Guests?" he asked with a curious expression under his helmet.

"Corporal, could you switch the outer cameras? Towards the aft, if possible," the Chiss ordered. The corporal obeyed without hesitation, the image showed only a portion of the _Chimaera_ 's hull. Another vessel blocked the view, a dark, small freighter, one that Kylo knew far better than he wished to.

"Katarn… We have to shoot him down, before they sabotage the ship!" Kylo raised her voice. They had to know about his presence aboard the _Chimaera_ , otherwise they wouldn't mask their presence in the Force.

Thrawn shook his head gently in protest.

"Kyle is not alone. Judging by the ship's accuracy, another Jedi should be on board, one with far superior shooting skills than Katarn. The _Pillar of Destruction_ had Jedi Knight Mira Wess on board. Her escape is the most likely explanation," Thrawn explained, caressing the wound on his neck.

"One more reason to shoot them," Kylo stated.

"And pass up two new recruits?" Thrawn frowned. "There is no guarantee that the experiment would succeed with Rey. In that case, we would require someone else to be Tenebrae's new host. Knowing their tenacity, capturing the Jedi alive would be highly unlikely. Unless our fight takes place exactly where we want it, in the exact manner we chose so."

"How do you wish to ensure that?" Kylo asked. By now, it became extremely uncomfortable to hold Rey in his hand. He persisted to hold her nonetheless.

"By using their own compassion against them."

* * *

 _Thank you for reading this chapter! I hope you enjoyed it as much as I enjoyed writing it! :)_

 _Don't forget to leave some feedback ;)_


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter V:**  
Last of the Creed

Mira stood in her cabin in silence, slowly inspecting the burnt mark on her back. She managed to get dozens of scars throughout the years, but this one felt different from the others. It wasn't the vicious cut on her shoulder from Darth Vader, nor the burnt marks on her thigh from dealing with the Black Sun. It indicated nor triumph nor luck, it just served as another shameful reminder of her mortality. For that reason, she decided to keep it.

Besides, there was nothing she could do about it on the ship. She was more worried about her shirt, and the gaping hole that was left in it by the shot. Kyle kept no female clothes on the _Moldy Crow_ , and the fabric was impossible to repair with the tools on their disposal. She had to live through the adventure with what was left of it. This infuriated her beyond measure.

She kept inspecting it until the point she could look at it no longer. She sat down on the carpet, and tried to calm herself through meditation, yet it proved to be more painful than the shot itself. As she closed her eyes, echoes of the past accompanied her in the darkness. Countless voices reached through her from the Force, all of them came by those who died because of her actions.

It was impossible to resist them. She opened her eyes, and stood up from the ground, brushing off the tears from her eyes. This wasn't the first time when the past begun to haunt her, and it seemed to be far from the last. In these times, she curled up on the bed, and kept watching the stars, until it was over.

The small window on the side of the room offered the perfect opportunity to calm herself. For a short while, it seemed to work, then someone started to knock on the door.

Mira sighed, and went off to greet her _guest_.

Kyle smiled as she opened the door for him.

"Don't tell me you can't sleep," Mira said jokingly. She was a master at hiding her pain.

"You wish," Kyle laughed mostly out of necessity. "I analysed our current course, at this rate, we will reach the Jedha in less than two days."

"The Jedha?" Mira frowned. "I thought nobody lives there anymore," she continued, thinking out loud.

"I thought the same," he nodded. "Some settlers established a few cities near the mines. This might just tell us what Thrawn is up to."

"Which is leading us to believe that this has something to do with the crystals," she continued. Her mission was about Rey, and about whatever horrors Thrawn wanted to inflict upon her. There was no doubt about that.

"I don't know, the _Death Star_ left a pretty big scar in the Force. If he was to use the crystals on her some way, then the scar might just help masking it in its entirety," he explained, giving her an idea.

"Or it can make the perfect mask behind whatever he is up to," Mira continued. "Problem is, we will only know that when we are there. And we will still have to get down there somehow."

"That might be just a bit easier, than we thought," Kyle added. "They couldn't have many fighters left, and with their tractor beam gone, we might be just able to escape them."

"Yeah, we might," she sighed.

"Better than nothing," Kyle shrugged, then he lowered his voice. "Listen, I'm finished with the repairs, and we will be in hyperspace for a while. How about we spar a bit?"

"What for?" she asked, although the offer seemed more interesting than ever. They were planning to decide who was stronger for a while, but they were always too busy to actually try their luck with each other. Besides, fighting was among the best things that could relieve the pain within her.

"I thought it might cheer you up a bit," he continued. Mira was shocked. She thought she masked her pain completely, but Kyle saw through her anyway. "Besides, don't pretend that you weren't looking forward to this for a while," he added jokingly.

"I wouldn't dare," she nodded, her face brightened up a bit.

She got her lightsaber from the couch, and started off to the lower deck.

In most cases, the _Moldy Crow's_ lower deck was as empty as a desert. Kyle never used it to transport goods – not since he joined the Order –, and thus, it made the perfect place for the fight.

After they entered the wide hall, the two combatants faced each other on the opposite sides of the room, ready to decide who was the more formidable warrior. After Malachor, Mira took her superiority for granted, but in there she had a grand advantage over her opponents. In here, they were equals – which made the fight even more exciting.

"Ready to lose?" Mira asked, gripping her weapon firmly in her hand.

"Don't flatter yourself," Kyle answered, and proceeded to activate the blue lightsaber.

Mira nodded, and by the time she brought her blade forth, they were both ready for the fight. Not just physically, but also mentally, constantly looking out for each other through the Force. They both knew it was dangerous to spar in this manner. They had to be on edge in order to avoid serious injuries.

Being excited as ever, Mira launched the first attack, stepping in front of Kyle, and striking him with a quick strike to his neck. The blow seemed to be a safety ride compared to what she was capable of. Kyle easily deflected the blow, but then Mira jumped next to her foe, and kicked him to the other side of the room.

Kyle quickly jumped up from the ground, staring at her with a harsh expression on his face. Mira shrugged, it was a friendly fight, but it was still a fight.

Knowing that her opponent will be more careful, Mira choose a more unique approach to the second round. As the two opponents launched themselves at each other, Mira jumped to the side of the man, and aimed her lightsaber behind him.

Kyle deflected the strike, and kicked her in the ass.

"You had that one coming," he said as Mira fell to the ground.

Mira expected another strike, but Kyle stood his ground, patiently waiting for his opponent to get up, so they could start the third round.

"Just wait, until I'm finished with you," she answered, her voice was more threatening than she meant it to be.

"You are welcome to try," Kyle answered, raising the blue blade for the defence.

"Famous last words," she darted, and began to launch her third attack.

Learning from the previous experiences, this time Mira was sure that she would come out on top. She started the attack with a swift strike at Kyle's shoulder, then, as he deflected it, she followed with a vicious blow on the side.

Kyle reacted just in time, sliding the blade in front of the attack, and stopping the blade just before he would be defeated. By the time he realized the real threat, it was too late: Mira kicked the lightsaber out of his hand, and relentlessly aimed a strike towards his chest.

As expected, Kyle managed get out of her way, but only by losing his balance. He fell on the ground; Mira aimed her lightsaber at his throat with a triumphant smile on her face. Finally, her darkness went away. She could breathe again.

"So I got lucky, huh?" she asked the obvious, referring to the grim events that unfolded on Malachor.

"Pretty much," Kyle answered, as the lightsaber hilt hit Mira on the back.

It could take only a gentle push, and she would be as good as dead. Kyle would never do that, she knew, but it felt as bad as being defeated by an actual enemy.

"Okay, you win this time," she sighed, deactivating her lightsaber.

The other hilt fell on the ground.

Mira extended her hand, and helped him to get up from the floor. It was fun to spar with him; there was no denying of it.

"You hungry?" Kyle asked, as he started off to the exit. All this fighting could make a man hungry, and even Mira was starving at this point.

"Sure," she nodded with surprise, and proceeded to follow him.

For a brief moment, their friendship felt more intense than it was supposed to be.

* * *

They survived it. The thought rushed through Luke Skywalker's head as he gazed over the green field, filled with the remaining Jedi and their battered ships. Ahsoka Tano stood beside him, she was troubled, just like everyone else after the battle.

For Luke, the word troubled meant an understatement. His worst nightmare came to life, when the _Finalizer_ appeared on the sky, and obliterated everything he worked for in the past twenty years. But some of their ships survived, alongside with thirty Jedi. Most of them were far from Odessen during the fight, once they heard the news, they to cut their missions, and came to the rendezvous point. Mara's ship should soon be here with the rest of the survivors, then they could go to a safe place, and begin it again, just like old times.

They will arrive, he was sure of it, however much time had passed.

"I don't like it," Ahsoka broke the silence, glancing back to their ship. "Ariss, hurry with those engines!"

"I'm on it!" the girl shouted. The clone of the once feared Noeya Adane was young, yet she grew fast, and became more resourceful with every passing month. She was merely a child, but she could stand her ground against any trained Jedi.

"They will be here," Luke said, keeping his gaze on the sky.

A moment later, the _Jade Shadow_ appeared on the horizon. The jedi Master smiled, then his joy turned the horror, as an old _Star Destroyer_ appeared on the sky, shooting the ship into pieces. Luke shouted as the vicious ball of fire replaced his beloved wife. He didn't notice that he was shouting, he only realized it later, as he could hear his own voice again. He stood there in shock, as the dreaded ship aimed his guns to the surface, sending the makeshift camp into chaos. The old frigates blew up one after the other, trained Jedi and their padawans were reduced to ash within seconds.

A hand grabbed his shoulder, pushing him into the ship. Ahsoka shouted something, then she held her arms above her, stopping the green laser from killing them right then and there.

"Go!" the togruta shouted.

As the _Reaver_ rose up from the ground, Luke looked at her in disbelief. A few years ago he barely let the woman back to the Order, and now she would sacrifice herself without a doubt. Then, as he watched Ahsoka withholding certain doom, he finally came into his senses.

It only took a swift movement with his hand to get Ahsoka back to the ship. Without her strength, the shot collided into the ground with impossible force. The shockwave reached the docking ramp within a friction of a second, but it got no further. Luke was standing on the other side, struggling with the laser's unbelievable force with tears in his eyes.

For a second, it seemed he did that in vain, but Ariss took the ship out of the blast area in time – just before he would faint.

"Thanks," Ahsoka nodded, the docking ramp closed behind them.

"They killed her… They killed Mara," Luke muttered with disbelief.

"I know", she nodded, as she strode towards the cockpit. "Jump to a random location as soon as you can! We can't let them chase us!"

"The First Order can't know about the tertiary location." Ariss objected.

"This is not the First Order," Ahsoka snapped, and suddenly Luke realized that the Remnant was the only one who used the old _Star Destroyers_.

As the _Reaver j_ umped to hyperspace, Luke began to wonder about the why of it. He realized the reason mattered very little by now. For all they knew, they were the only survivors of the attack. The Jedi Order was once again reduced to only a few followers of their great religion. They were the last of the creed, their survival was the only thing that mattered.

* * *

 _Thank you for reading this chapter! I hope you enjoyed it as much as I enjoyed writing it! :)_

 _Don't forget to leave some feedback ;)_


	6. Chapter 6

**Chapter VI:**  
Departure

As the _Chimaera_ drew near to Jedha, Kylo Ren realized it was time to leave the ship for good. If he was to assassinate Snoke, he needed to meet with his contacts, and formulate a plan for a successful attack. And he had to do it fast – otherwise the Supreme Leader could learn about his intentions, and make an example out of the usurper.

It didn't take long for the first problem to arise though. When the Knight reached his ship, the guard informed him that Thrawn forbade his departure. For a moment, he wanted to murder the stormtrooper in cold blood, but then another idea came to his mind.

He knocked the guard unconscious, and dragged him out of the hangar, heading towards Thrawn's personal cabin. The guards in front of the door tried to stop him, but he was more than able to knock them unconscious with the Force.

Kylo opened the door, and dropped the guard in the middle of the cabin. Once the body landed on the floor, he activated his lightsaber, and marched into the room.

Thrawn didn't bother to turn around. He sat silently in the middle of his chamber, observing the countless artifacts gathered from Jedha's surviving population. They were all but holographic images of their true manifestations, yet they could still provide invaluable insight to the inhabitant's culture.

"The next one, who denies my passage, won't be so lucky," Kylo warned him.

"Neither will you, if you touch my soldiers again," Thrawn answered, slowly tilting his head towards him. "I warn you, we became allies out of necessity, and not mutual interests. Not to mention the fact that your aid ceased to be crucial for the remainder of this mission at the moment you gave me the young Rey Skywalker."

"How do you expect me to kill Snoke if you lock me into this piece of junk?" he raised his voice, letting the threat slide for the moment.

"I don't," he answered, turning back towards the artifacts. "Luke and the remaining Jedi are more than able to handle him, assuming that they can approach him unnoticed. Your interference would likely cause their failure, and put you into an incredibly difficult position."

Kylo raised his saber high. He was willing to let the first insult go, but this one proved to be too much. One moment he was ready to slice the Chiss in two, then he froze, as Thrawn raised his finger.

"Although, your assistance against the Jedi would be more than welcome. For now, they act according to my plans, however I learned not to take chances with them. When they walk into my trap, I want you to be present, in order to ensure everything goes as expected," he explained, seemingly not caring how close he was to death.

"So that's why you want me to stay," he answered harshly, and thought back to their fight with Mira. She was not a Jedi, not by his standards, and if Thrawn wanted to deal with her, he needed someone who could think with the outcast's mind. Besides, it was about time she would pay for shaming him in front of the Knights of Ren. "They won't be a problem."

"Expect them to make their first move as soon as the orbital bombardment commences," Thrawn continued. "Kyle Katarn wouldn't let us dig to the chamber in this manner, however this encounter should be far from fatal."

"Understood," he nodded, although he could make no promises.

* * *

As most mornings since the _Chimaera's_ departure, Mira decided to eat her breakfast with Kyle. She wanted to discuss their progress with the repairs – although in reality there wasn't much to say about it. It was simply the only topic she had in mind.

As she began to talk, she noticed there was something different about him. He was tired, and extremely unresponsive. He seldom opened his mouth, but when he did so, his breath alone could have been enough to stop the _Chimaera_ and its crew.

"You think they got away?" Kyle asked finally.

It took Mira some time to realize he was talking about the shuttle that tried to escape from Odessen. It amazed her how quickly these events could disappear into the corner of her mind, where they would slowly torment her without making any indication of their presence.

"I don't," Mira shook her head.

Kyle glared at her with disbelief.

"Mara was on board," he answered, notably raising his voice.

"They were ready for us, and you said they were nowhere near the regroup position," she answered, so coldly that even she was scared of herself. "Mara is good, I know, but I don't think it was up to chance."

"So they are all dead, and we should just live with it," Kyle shrugged. "I guess it's all the same to you."

"We are at war, if you hadn't noticed," she answered coldly. "And when you are at war, this is what you get. Trust me, no one is more tired about it than me."

"Then why are you here?" Kyle asked.

"Because Rey's life is on the line. Just as yours, my stepdaughter's, Luke's, Ahsoka's, and everyone's who survived the attack. I'm here because for some unfathomable reason, when a war breaks out, every idiot with a lightsaber wants to be in the middle of it. Like it's the best thing in the world. When I met you, I already lost everything I had. Everyone I knew was dead. I'm not going through that again," she said.

"Like we had any choice in the matter," Kyle shrugged.

"I wonder why that is," Mira glared at him. She wanted to add something else, but she forgot about it when the floor began to shake.

They arrived to Jedha.

When the tremors were gone, their anger seemed to evaporate into nothing. They were a team. They might had their disagreements, but right now, only one thing mattered: getting Rey before Thrawn kills her.

"I got the ship, you got the guns," Kyle said, Mira nodded without hesitation.

From this section of the ship, it didn't take long for either of them to reach their stations. Mira took her seat at the main gun, and prepared herself for the fight. Then the _Moldy Crow_ detached itself from the _Chimaera's_ dark hull, and turned away from the giant. Mira noticed two other ships near the beast; they were the Victory-class Star Destroyers that helped them against the _Pillar of Destruction_.

For a short while, as they flew away from the fleet, everything seemed to be perfectly as it should have been. But then, as Mira locked her eyes on the _Chimaera's_ hangar bay, a strange feeling took root in her guts.

"Where are the fighters?" she asked in the intercom.

"I guess they lost too much against Ezra," Kyle stated, she felt uncertainty in his voice. "Or us," he added a moment later.

"So they wouldn't even try?" she asked. Thrawn should have sent all his remaining fighters to chase them away from his fleet.

She noticed some movement on the _Chimaera_. The Star Destroyer raised its mighty guns towards Jedha, and opened fire on the surface. The thick, green bolts glided through the darkness of space, setting ablaze everything that lay beneath them. Soon after the Victory's joined as well, pointing their smaller cannons towards the target area, and unleashing deadly shots on the planet.

"What the...?" Kyle raised his voice, turning the ship about.

"I don't know," Mira shook her head in disbelief. She felt the echoes of the perished souls through the Force, but she had to resist the urge to help them. If they were to attack the fleet, their chances of survival were non-existent. "This is not our fight."

"What are you talking about?" Kyle snapped. She could feel his anger through the intercom.

Mira looked at the horizon again, there were no fighters in their vicinity. Then, she strapped herself out of the chair, and started off towards the cockpit. If there was a way to save the mission, she could only do it in person.

"What are you doing?" she asked, as she entered the room.

"Get back in there, we have to help those people," Kyle answered firmly.

Mira pushed activated the display to show him the planet's surface. A large, molten spot indicated the resting place of thousands of innocent people. By this time, no one could have been alive down there, yet the fleet continued its relentless bombardment.

"They are gone, Kyle," Mira stated, mixing some empathy in her voice. "There is nothing we could do."

"But they killed them…" Kyle shook his head.

"I know," she nodded. "But I don't think they did it just because they could. I think they are digging," she continued, pointing to the image. "Maybe there is a shrine down there. Or a hidden facility they could use."

"A facility?" Kyle frowned.

"We have to take a closer look," she answered, she couldn't be sure about the hunch. "They are focusing on the city, maybe we could land the ship before they would notice. If we put it close to the mountains, there would be no way for them to reach it."

Kyle sighed, and turned the ship around.

"Thanks," Mira stated, putting a hand to his shoulder.

By the time the _Moldy Crow_ landed on the desert planet, the imperials were finished with the orbital bombardment. With the ship on the ground, it was next to impossible to say what they uncovered under the remains. Kyle and Mira had to go there themselves, and take a closer look at the ruins.

They landed at least sixty clicks away from the target area. Walking there was not an option, so they continued their path on a glider. The long, dark-brown vehicle in the belly of the ship made the perfect vessel for the ride. The only problem came from its design: in his late days, Kyle never expected for another passenger, therefore it had only one seat. Mira, being the one who had to sit on the thick metal, wasn't too comfortable with the idea.

The glider stroke through the desert, sweeping dust for mile after mile behind itself. Kyle shielded her from the wind, however the vehicle's crude voice became almost unbearable for the woman clinging firmly to Katarn's back.

"Sorry about the breakfast," Mira said, as they strode through the land, trying to be apologetic for once. "They might have survived, there is no way for us to know."

"No, you were right. They are most likely dead," he answered. Mira could barely hear his voice in the wind. "But I guess the mission remains."

"It does," Mira nodded, then she looked up to the sky, seeing the convoy of fighters and transport ships heading to the site.

She decided to stay silent for the rest of the ride.

* * *

 _Thank you for reading this chapter! I hope you enjoyed it as much as I enjoyed writing it! :)_

 _Don't forget to leave some feedback ;)_


	7. Chapter 7

**Chapter VII:**  
Diversion

The glider swept through the land with a fierce roar from its engines. Mira sat behind Kyle in silence, endlessly thinking about the next obstacle Thrawn would throw in their way. The Chiss had no way to know about their whereabouts, thus sending troops against them would have been a foolish idea. Luring them out, on the other hand, seemed to be a much better one.

As part of the New Jedi Order, both of them were obligated to follow a code. A strict set of rules that dictated their actions. It was a useful tool when they had to make a hard call, however it also made them predictable for those who were after them. If not for their superior skills and their unmatched determination, Mira was sure, the Jedi would have been long gone from this world. She remembered of countless occasions when their enemies used their own code against them. And if their previous foes could do that, it was more than assured that Thrawn would try something like this as well.

Following this trail of thought, only two questions left at the end of the road:

What would he try? And how could they get out of it?

The answer for the first one came sooner than expected. Tilting her head to the right, she saw the smokes from a village pillaged by Thrawn's forces. If it were up to her, she would continue her journey, pretending that she had seen nothing. However, there was no way Kyle would do the same.

Katarn deactivated the engines, slowing them down on the desert's dark brown sand.

"They are slaughtering them," Kyle said in disbelief, stopping the glider entirely above the hot ground.

"Wait a minute," Mira told him, getting the macrobinocular in her hand.

Burned buildings lay in front her in the distance, however she could see no active fire. Wrecked gliders lay between the buildings. She looked closely for bodies near them, but there were none. Thrawn didn't just slaughter the inhabitants, he also took the bodies with him.

Either that, or the attack was a set-up.

"There are no bodies," she said with a splinter of surprise in her voice. "They are setting us up."

"We can't just leave them," Kyle shook his head.

They both remembered their previous conversation. The last thing she wanted to do was to start bickering about this in the middle of a warzone. Even though, the confrontation seemed to be unavoidable.

"There are no bodies. Who exactly do you want to protect?" she asked firmly.

"I feel a presence in there," he answered, although the presence could both indicate survivors, or stormtroopers, ready for an ambush. "We have to be sure."

"And while we do that, Rey dies," she sighed, although at this point, there was no way to convince him.

"We will save her too, when the time comes," Kyle said, as he restarted the glider.

The vehicle's engine came to life with a wild roar, and a second later Mira found herself sweeping through the sand with full speed towards the potential trap. She sighed, and continued to watch the smoking horizon, hoping that they would walk away from this encounter.

* * *

It didn't take long for them to reach the ruins. As soon as they stopped at the edge of the burnt settlement, Kyle stepped out of the glider, holding his lightsaber firmly in his hand. Mira followed him soon after, looking around the cursed place.

Seeing it from the distance, she couldn't care less for the village, but from here, it felt much more than a collections of burned buildings and ruined vehicles. These were the homes of people – dead people.

She heard footsteps, and immediately activated her lightsaber. Kyle's blue blade appeared soon after, making the _invader_ stop right there and then. The old man collapsed on the ground before them, his eyes pleaded for mercy, the scar on his side called for immediate aid.

"Are you alright?" Kyle said, deactivating his lightsaber. He leaned close to the old man, helping him to stand on his feet.

Mira looked around, and continued to watch them from a distance.

"They came from nowhere…" the old man said, standing in the brink of unconsciousness. "We tried to stop them, but we didn't stand chance…"

"Where are the others?" Kyle asked. There was little reason to leave them behind – even if they were setting up an ambush, they were where they wanted them to be. There was no gain in delaying the inevitable.

"They took them to the mountains… They said they would execute them…" the old man muttered. "They left me behind, I don't know why…" he continued, then he collapsed in Kyle's hand.

The Jedi Master placed his hand on the wound, trying to help him with the Force. It took several seconds for him to do so. The wait gave some time for Mira to think before her partner would lead them into another setup.

Finally, Kyle let go of the wound, and cautiously carried the old man to his ruined home. Mira waited for him outside, there was no way to know if there were explosives in the building or something even more dangerous.

"He will live," Kyle explained. "They must have carried them in one those ships that flew by. If we hurry, we could get to them before they suffer further harm," he explained, swiftly getting towards their glider.

"That is exactly where Thrawn wants us to do," she answered, making him stop a few steps in front of her.

"I know," Kyle admitted.

"Then why do you want to go there?" Mira asked, although she already suspected the answer to that one.

"Because I'd rather die there then to leave them behind," Kyle answered firmly. "But I guess you can't understand that, do you?"

"I do," she nodded. "My father did the same thing before he left me alone. And for what? Go ahead, save them, I will carry out the mission."

"We are a team," Kyle stated.

"So was I with dad," she answered coldly. "For some reason, everyone loses their minds when it comes to people. That's why they can win. And that's why I always do the opposite."

"So that's it? You just gonna walk ten miles in the desert, kill everyone in the base, and somehow save Rey in the process," Kyle answered.

"I will have a better chance on foot then dead," she answered coldly.

Kyle took a deep breath and hopped on the glider. After he ignited the engine, he was gone in mere seconds. Mira glared at the small vehicle, it was only now that she realized she was holding her lightsaber ready for ignition.

She was ready to go on foot towards the site, but she noticed something in the last moment. One of the speeders was shot only at its side, leaving its engine still operational. It wasn't too comfortable due to its mangled interior, although it was still better than a long, exhilarating walk on the deadly sand.

After a few minutes of checking, she ignited the vehicle's engine, darting towards the ruins of a once flourishing city. The _Chimaera_ was levitating on the sky above it, sending one shuttle after the other to the surface. She would be up against an overwhelming force, yet she still had one advantage:

Thrawn wouldn't expect that she was still after him.

* * *

The orbital bombardment didn't even scratch the facility's armored ceiling. The Emperor's servants did an excellent job with its construction, leaving thick metal and shields in the way of those who dared to visit this place. No one could get inside after the battle of Endor, Kylo was sure of it, as his shuttle descended towards the grey, wide field of metal.

The facility itself was meant to be a refuge for the Emperor. The only way to open it was through a signal to be sent once the facility's upper level became unravelled by the bombardment. As the _Chimaera_ sent the right code to the surface, the facility's thick, wide door had opened, letting the shuttle in the heart of the secret site.

"I want to go home…" the young Rey pleaded with tears in her eyes.

"Don't make me silence you again," Kylo shrugged, instinctively glancing back to Thrawn. The Chiss stood behind him with an expressionless face, seemingly not noticing the young girl.

Rey nodded, although Kyle was sure this wasn't the end of their quarrel.

"A remarkable work of art, isn't it?" Thrawn asked, ignoring what the girl said.

"It's a bunker, there is hardly anything remarkable about it," Kylo shrugged as he flew through the hangar's giant door.

Once they were on the other side, seemingly a million lights brightened the area beneath them, revealing the rigid, grey fortifications down the surface. As _ordered_ , Kylo steered the vehicle to the main bunker deep within the facility. That was the most secure location for their experiment.

Looking at the large, dome-like shape of the building, he had to admit, there was something remarkable about this place. He had never seen anything like it before, thus, even as the servant of the First Order, he had to give credit to the creators.

"How do we know that he killed him?" Kylo asked after a few moment of silence, referring to Luke's most expected course of action.

"Once Tenebrae is free of his puppets body, he will have to search for another host, one that can accommodate him the best," Thrawn explained. "Our only indication will likely be that he takes over the young Rey Skywalker's body, in which case, we should move on to the final stage of our mission."

"How could we make sure that he stays here?" he asked afterwards. The Chiss explained his plan previously, yet it seemed impossible that anything could hold something as powerful as Tenebrae in place. "Even if Rey would be stuck here, he could easily choose another body. Just like he chose Snoke."

"Once he has a body, he could only effectively operate around that body, just like at the times of the Old Republic. His main body was occupied over Zakuul, making his other form an easy prey for the Jedi. Thus, even if he finds someone, we will have a much better chance to deal with him," he explained coldly, although they both knew how much was at stake.

"Why wouldn't he?" he asked out of curiosity.

"Once the facility is closed, it would take a Death Star to get through the entrance. When Tenebrae realizes that, by my estimation, he will do everything he could possibly do to get through the entrance in his blind range. However, his abilities are not suited for working with metal, they are best used to destroy life. He won't be able to get through, but on the course of his many trials, he will effectively reduce the population to nothing. It's difficult to find a host in a graveyard, don't you think?" he asked the obvious.

"I guess so," he answered, as they got near the bunker's entrance. He started the landing process. Once they were down there, they could place the girl in a room that could withhold anything – even the wrath of the almighty Sith Emperor.

A loud noise broke the silence. Thrawn accepted to call, only to answer a single _Proceed_ to the message.

"The Jedi have split up," he explained, Kylo felt a momentary joy in his voice.

"That's bad, isn't it?" he asked cautiously.

"Only to those who haven't read the reports about the actions of Mira Wess. The woman is only Jedi in name, thus it's logical that he would abandon Kyle, and go on with her mission alone. She will be here soon, and once she arrives, we will have the second subject to our experiment. Kyle Katarn will follow soon," Thrawn explained.

Kylo gave out a sigh. The majority of their special forces were off to prepare the ambush for Katarn, leaving only one person who could ensure Mira's successful capture.

* * *

 _Thank you for reading this chapter! I hope you enjoyed it as much as I enjoyed writing it! :)_


	8. Chapter 8

**Chapter VIII:**  
The only way

Kyle reached the enemy encampment within four hours. Knowing that he was walking to a trap, he prepared well for the encounter. As soon he got close, he hid the glider behind the rocks, and climbed up the mountain bordering the camp. From that height, the Jedi Master had an excellent view on the situation at hand.

The enemy was prepared for an attack. Makeshift bunkers were surrounding the fortified area, numerous AT-STs patrolled close by, accompanied by multiple squads of stormtroopers. The prisoners were well hidden from plain sight, it was a challenge to locate them even for a trained Jedi. Kyle could see the containers lying in the middle of the camp, and he could feel the numerous people entrapped in them.

For a lone warrior, it seemed to be impossible to get there in one piece; but he couldn't just walk away. He took a deep breath, and activated the mines placed in the distance.

An explosion shook the land, sending countless pieces of rocks into the fiery air. For a moment, the stormtroopers stood in silence, watching the impossible unfold before their eyes. Then, all of a sudden, dozens of soldiers and vehicles seared off towards the blast area. Kyle watched them disappear in the horizon, then he made his way into the camp.

Only two-dozen stormtroopers remained in vicinity, accompanied by two walkers. There could be still a few soldiers in the bunker, although they represented the least of his concerns. Once the attack has begun, the rest of the imperials would quickly realize their error, and get back here before he could finish his task. He had to move fast, otherwise Mira's estimation would soon prove to be correct.

He waited for a few minutes, then, as the AT-ST passed by the rocks, he launched his assault. Stepping to the ground behind the walker's unsuspecting pilot, Kyle ignited the blue lightsaber, cutting both of the legs with a swift blow.

The mechanical beast fell on the ground with a loud thud, shaking the ground underneath it. Countless soldiers turned towards Kyle in that moment, opening fire at him within an instant. The Jedi Master held his hand before him, stopping all incoming shots with a single thought. Kylo Ren wasn't the only one who could do that.

For a moment, the troopers looked at him in deadly silence, then they looked up the sky, watching the Jedi jumping above the shots, and striking them down with a deadly blow. Kyle moved fast – even for a Jedi –, stepping out the way of desperate shots, slicing down his foes with quick and sudden blows. Yet even a Jedi Master had his limits.

As Kyle struck down two stormtroopers with a fierce, horizontal blow, the remaining AT-ST's gun swept through the air, as it unleashed a pair of deadly shots. He jumped away, but it was too late for getting out of the blow's wide radius. The explosion pushed him into a huge, oval shaped rock, possibly breaking a few of his ribs.

Struggling with the pain, he jumped up from the ground, facing the deadly beast and half a dozen troopers accompanying it. Feeling blood in his mouth, he remembered back to the hangar, where Mira turned the table around so easily. But it didn't matter how much he tried, he couldn't figure out how to do what she did.

Thus he did the opposite.

Reaching out with the Force, he grabbed the walker, and slammed it into the troopers standing beside it. The vehicle broke into pieces with a fiery blow, killing everyone who dared to stand too close. Only four soldiers survived the explosion, plus two men from the bunkers. As they opened fire at him, Kyle knew what to do.

Deflecting the shots with his lightsaber, the Jedi Master strode forward, getting the ones in the bunkers from the distance, and dealing with the others up close. After a quick strike, only two stormtroopers remained. Kyle cut one into two with a sudden strike, then he leapt next to the other one, slicing off his hand as he fired a missed shot, the he cut his head off with his next attack.

He felt remorse after the slaughter. Despite his age, and the things he went through, there was still some part of him that opposed war in its entirety. He missed Mira from his side, yet he understood her decision. He understood it as completely as Luke did. He was proud of the latter, but the first one made him scared beyond measure.

As he thought about his own good will, he got near the containers, inspecting the lock on the one closest by. The reinforcements should had been far away, giving him some time to free the people trapped in them. After a few seconds, he realized a simple cut was all he needed to open them.

The containers door swept open after the cut. A squad of black stormtroopers stood on the other side, keeping their weapons steady in their hand. In his shock, Kyle hesitated for a moment. By that time they could have easily killed him, but they did no such thing. The doors of the other containers swept open, and a small army marched towards the intruder.

There were no civilians to save. They never been here the first place.

At the moment of the shock, the black armored trooper before him fired his weapon, knocking him out with a stun-shot.

* * *

Luke stared at Ariss with anger. They young girl did not wrong to him, and actually proved to be more help than anyone else in this situation. Even though, he was about to explode in his anger. First Snoke got her wife and his followers, then Rey was next, and they had no idea where to find her. The Supreme leader could do to her anything he wanted, yet here they were, slowly drifting in space, trying to evade their enemies instead of fighting them.

"I'm sorry, I lost them… I have no idea why, but…" Ariss pleaded, then she fell silent. Being a clone, the young girl grew fast, and seemed like much more of a teenager than someone who lived only for a few brief years. With it, her intelligence was growing as quickly as ever, but now she was puzzled to find the right words. "There is someone stronger in this. Someone a lot more stronger than me."

"We can't let Kyle and Mira chase them alone," Luke shook his head, unable to believe what he had just heard. "We are all that's left from the Order after they got that shuttle. If…" he continued, but suddenly he was the one who couldn't find the right words.

It was over. The New Jedi over crumpled and collapsed before his eyes, and he was powerless to stop it. Maybe, with enough time passed, he could be able to live with it, but not with the loss of his only child.

"She is right," Ahsoka said, standing at the other side of the cabin. He thought she would add his title to the back of the sentence, but now, with everything that going on, the togruta's mind was too occupied to consider herself the part of another destroyed Jedi Order. "They are on their own, Luke, just as we are."

The three of them here, and those in there were all that was left of their creed. Another mistake, and this number would plummet into nothing, they all knew that very well.

"Then we go against Snoke," Luke said with anger. "Ariss, you can find it, can't you?"

"I know where he is, but…" she answered, not knowing how to say what she meant to say.

"If we go, and we lose, we are finished," Ashoka spoke, being the only one who was used to this kind of situations. "There will be no third Jedi Order, we would simply cease to exist."

"He has my kid," Luke answered, gritting his teeth. "If we can get to him, then maybe…"

"We are not assassins," Ashoka interrupted him.

"And who's saying that? Vader's only surviving apprentice?" Luke raised his voice. Deadly silence accompanied his words.

Ahsoka looked at him, shocked, hurt, angry, yet determined not to make a scene out of it. The togruta took a sharp glance at him, then stormed out of the cabin, so she could calm herself in her room.

"She is right," Ariss darted, she seemed even angrier than Ahsoka was. "If we do this, even if we win, we are no better than the Sith."

"So what?" he raised his voice yet again. "He has my kid."

"This is not you," she shook her head in disbelief.

"You think?" he asked. "Just watch me when we get to Snoke."

* * *

 _Thank you for reading this chapter! I hope you enjoyed it as much as I enjoyed writing it! :)_


	9. Chapter 9

**Chapter IX:**  
The trap closes

Mira's glider swept through the land with seemingly impossible speed. She knew the imperials would try to build a defense line around the fortress, but she also knew it took time – even for the Empire – to put the advanced towers and machinery down the surface. Besides: the faster she went, the smaller the chance was for something to hit her.

A faint smile appeared on her face as she approached her target. The imperials could only deploy a dozen or so stormtroopers before the rift, accompanied by an AT-ST. Thrawn was a fool to prioritize the troops against Kyle. Now he had almost nothing left to stop her.

She was three hundred meters away from the soldiers, when they managed to spot her. The troops yelled orders between each other as they rushed into combat. Dozens of E-11s were raised towards the glider, alongside with two stationary guns. The AT-STs robust head made a small turn, lowering its gun to its target.

Mira thought about her trick from the last time, but the walker's rapid shots made her forget about the idea. Red lasers burst through the air, heading towards the glider. Mira swept the speeder away from the shot. It dug a crater into the burnt ground, only to be followed by dozens of smaller projectiles.

Mira glided away from the shots with swift manoeuvres. One projectile nearly hit her in the head, but she didn't care. The AT-ST fired again, and this time, the projectile almost melted the glider – only to be outmanoeuvred in the last possible moment.

By the time the walker could shoot again, the glider almost reached the defense line. A few troopers decided to make a run for it, the others tried to hit her with a desperate yell. The small distance made it difficult to evade them, but she managed to do it anyway. The AT-ST shot to the ground before the glider, the impact nearly flipped the vehicle, although she had managed to keep it on course.

Then she was through, gliding through between the mechanic monster's feet, continuing her way towards the rift. The troopers didn't cease fire after the breakthrough, they just simply turned back, and continued to fire towards the glider.

She expected the AT-ST to fire again – but she didn't notice the real threat.

The glider was stopped in the air with impossible force, then it was tossed to a solemn rock like a toy. The machine broke apart, rolling back to the molten ground in smoking pieces. By this time, Mira jumped off the vehicle, landing on her feet ahead of the glider's remains.

Her foe's identity came no surprise to her. Kylo Ren stood in front her, gripping firmly the lightsaber in his hand. They both remembered their previous encounter, and they both knew what would happen next. The imperials were on their way here from the defense line, still, they should have sufficient time to settle the score.

"You didn't expect this to be so easy, right?' Mira broke the silence.

"Don't worry, it will be quite easy for me. You? Not so much," Kylo shrugged.

"Funny, your grandfather said the same thing," Mira answered as she took the blade in her hand.

"And then he defeated you, just as I will do it again," he answered.

Mira took a deep breath, sensing what was about to happen. Being as impatient as he was, Kylo got bored with the conversation, and charged towards her, activating the triangular blade in his hand.

Mira raised the green blade to the defense, and watched as the red one swept through her sabre – and then through her body as well.

The air froze between them. Kylo turned towards her, then she did the same, gazing deep into the helmet. Another cut swept through her, then again, and again. At the end, Kylo screamed as loud as any man ever could.

"What have you done, Jedi?" Kylo asked, making another useless attempt to strike at his foe. Finally, he gave up, gasping for air, filled with anger like a child.

"I paid attention to my master," she shrugged, deactivating the useless blade in her hand. "You really believed I would leave Kyle behind?"

"What did you do?" he asked, gasping for air under the mask.

"I evened the odds," she answered with a smile or her face.

Kylo stared at her in anger, then the he looked up, as a ship's engines shook the ground beneath them. The _Moldy Crow_ glided over the defense line, followed by half a dozen TIE fighters in its wake. The gray death machines took one shot at their target after the other, most missed, one managed to hit the ship.

Mira's expression changed for a moment. It was time to focus on other matters.

"We will meet again," she stated, then she disappeared.

* * *

"Time to wake up, princess!" Kyle's voice echoed through the ship, as she was awoken from her meditation. For the sake of both battles, she was controlling the projection from the gun battery, thus it took only a second to get back to the fight.

Previously, the _Moldy Crow_ could offer no resistance, thus none of the fighters expected a counterattack. And now, as she began to aim with the gun, she could feel the pilot's desperate fear who thought it must have been broken. The first pilot tried to evade the shot, but to no avail. The shot tore the TIE fighter apart, its remains ripped another fighter into two.

Burning pieces fell to the ground after the fiery explosion. She turned the gun down to Kylo, sensing the death and destruction around him. The wreckages avoided them, but the Knight's fury remained. Filled with anger and desperation, he turned against Thrawn's forces, cutting the stormtroopers apart like dummies. The desperate soldiers on board the AT-ST tried to shoot him, but the vehicle was quickly torn apart as well.

She thought about shooting Kylo. As she turned to gun at him, she was ready to open fire, but the _Crow_ tilted its nose down as she pulled the trigger. The shot got one of the TIE fighters instead, making sure that only a few would follow them.

To her surprise, the rest of fighters broke the chase, and turned back towards the Star Destroyer hovering above the fortress. Mira shot one of them into two, then she activated the intercom.

"What's happening?" she asked with haste.

"They are closing the entrance," he answered. "Don't worry, we will fit. Mostly."

"Mostly? I'm at the back at the ship, remember?" she snapped, but there was no answer.

The _Moldy Crow_ glided towards the entrance as the giant blocks of metal came to a close before them. Mira took a deep breath, feeling Kyle's desperation from the corner of her mind. The ship's nose got through, just as the middle section, but the gates managed to enclose the end section in the last moment. For a second, it seemed it would crack the ship apart, but the engines managed to push them through before the shields would give up.

"Whoa, that was close," Kyle commented, as they continued their path towards the bottom of the fortress.

"You call this close?" she asked.

For a moment, she expected an answer. Then she saw the multitude of bunkers and defense cannons beneath them. They could rip the _Crow_ apart, that was more than certain.

"Don't worry, they are not manned yet. I see Kylo's shuttle near the biggest one, I think this is where Rey is," he answered, tilting the ship's nose to the ground. "I don't know how, but I can feel her."

"Me too," she nodded. "Any chance they are ready for us?"

"Not much," he said. "I think he really didn't expect this one."

"Let's hope so," she nodded.

She heard gunshots, as the _Crow_ 's forward batteries opened fire, obliterating everyone who would stand before the sealed entrance. Another salvo, and the metal door was pierced open as well, clearing a path towards Rey.

Mira kept sweeping through the area with the gun. There was no resistance left. For once, it really seemed that Thrawn took the bait.

I would be that cold? She asked for herself for a moment. Deep down, she knew the answer very well.

The _Moldy Crow_ made its landing next to Kylo's ruined ship – even Kyle couldn't stand the urge to reduce it to molten debris. Mira took a quick glance at it as they left the ship, then quickened her steps to catch it with Kyle. Her partner didn't pay much attention to their surroundings. He just wanted to get Rey, and leave this place while they still could do so. Deep down she couldn't agree more.

The first problem posed itself as soon as they passed the entrance. Dead stormtroopers bodies lay on the floor. She swept her surroundings with the Force, there was no reinforcements in the proximity. She could only feel Rey, the personnel were too few even for an escort.

"I don't like this," Mira broke the silence.

"Brings back memories, huh?" Kyle asked, remembering how things went in the previous facility that looked exactly as this.

"Don't worry, I'm here to save you," she said jokingly. For a moment her fear was gone. Then it quickly returned.

"Let's go," Kyle stated, starting off towards the corridor.

Mira nodded, and followed him. It didn't matter how few beings she sensed, there could always be a trap before them. She kept her eyes open all the way through the corridors, focusing her attention only to their goal: and that was rescuing Rey.

Mara tasked her to look after her, and she probably died knowing she was only one to save her child. If she truly died like this, then there was nothing that she wouldn't do to save Rey, and if Mara were still alive, then it was all the more advised to return with the girl on her side. Otherwise there was no telling what Mara would do to her.

No guard stood at the entrance. Kyle crossed her eyes with Kyle, then she nodded. They had to get in, no matter what stood at the other side.

The door glided to the wall with a loud thud. She stood shocked at the sight of the other room. Memories from seven years ago flooded her mind, and died away, as Thrawn locked eyes with her. The Chiss stood behind the thick glass wall of an observation post, looking at the young Rey being prepared for her fate.

Two surgeons made ready for the procedure, marking the cuts they were preparing to make. Mira could see in their mind what they were about to do. They were to cut off her limbs, strip the girl from her eyes and ears, and put her in a tank soon to be embedded into the floor. To a crypt where no one could escape from.

"Get away from her!" she yelled, igniting her lightsaber.

Thrawn glared at her with an expressionless face.

"You can see what are about to do, don't you?" the Chiss asked. "Go ahead, stop them."

There was no need to repeat the suggestion.

The surgeons backed away from the child. Mira sensed their fear, but cared little about it. She raised the sabre, and quickly trusted it into the tallest men's chest.

"Mira!" Kyle yelled, but to no use.

Mira leapt to the other side of the table, cutting the other man into two. She looked back at Kyle with fire in her eyes. For a moment none of them could be sure that they were friends or foes in this room.

"What are you doing?!" Kyle raised his voice.

"Some people are too dangerous to be kept alive," she answered, then extinguished the blade.

"Exactly my point," Thrawn added.

The green blade was ignited again, and then thrown towards the Chiss. The glass stopped the blade with only a scratch on its surface.

"Why do this with a child?" she asked.

"A three year old would hardly make a great host for Tenebrae, don't you think?" he asked. "If one wants to provide the perfect host for him, there has to be some augmentations."

"How about I make some augmentations on you?" Mira darted. She reached towards him with the Force, but she couldn't get a hold of the Chiss. As if he was never here in the first place.

"You are not the only one who could command projections," Thrawn answered. "You played your cards well up to this moment, Mira. However, there is one thing you have gravely mistaken."

"What?"

"You didn't save Rey by killing the surgeons, they are hardly irreplaceable. Neither did you save Rey by threatening me. In fact, you just prolonged the precious little time I could allocate to answer appropriately to your intrusion."

Mira heard the door open behind them. She quickly turned back in the room, only to see his old enemy to enter. Kyle stepped through the door, carefully keeping an eye on both of them. He had arrived quicker then she expected, but it didn't matter.

This time, he was up against the two of them.

* * *

 _Thank you for reading this chapter! I hope you enjoyed it as much as I enjoyed writing it! :)_


	10. Chapter 10

**Chapter X:**  
The rescue

Kylo Ren activated his lightsaber. The door closed behind him with a hissing sound. Mira glanced back at Kyle, this time there was no question about their allegiance. Knowing their opponents harsh, uncontrollable power, they had to fight as one to survive the encounter.

"You can't run away this time," Kylo stated. The brilliant light of three sabers brightened the room around them. The Knight's anger formed a horrendous aura around him. One so strong that even Mira feared what would happen next.

"And neither will you," she stated firmly, as if the words would wash her fear away.

"I won't need to. I will crush you two just as I did the rest of your order. And then Luke will be next," he continued. Mira tried to dismiss his words, being far too familiar with this crude technique. All Jedi sought power in harmony, and aggravating their anger could easily lead to actions they regret. Even for her.

"Come on, give it a shot," she darted, keeping the lightsaber on the defense.

Kylo raised the blade above his head, and initiated the attack. The strike came strong, yet not unexpected. As the blade swung towards her, Mira stepped out of its way, and counterattacked with a swift blow to the leg.

Kylo reacted quickly, stopping the attack with the crossguard of his saber.

As the two blades collided with each other with raw power, Katarn initiated an attack. The Jedi launched himself against his foe, but Kylo stopped him in the air, holding his hand towards him.

"Pathetic," the Knight said, and then pushed Mira back with his saber.

She quickly retreated, but not fast enough to avoid the next attack. Kylo wasted no time for the counterattack: he struck towards his opponent's neck with impossible force, and she could only stop it in the last possible moment with the green blade.

Despite the swift action, the strike's power proved to be too much for her. The red blade ripped Mira's lightsaber out of her hand, and sent her down to the cold floor. Kylo stepped to her, raising the saber for the final strike.

As the saber rose, she glanced at Kyle, but he had no chance to get out of his grasp.

Lacking all other options, she rolled out of the blade's way, causing it to strike the ground beside her. Before Kylo could raise the weapon again, Mira jumped to her feet, and punched Kylo in the face, neglecting the metallic helmet on his head.

The sound of shattering bones filled the room, Kylo stepped back, trying to regain his balance. Neglecting the pain from her damaged hand, Mira called the lightsaber to her with the Force, and continued with the attack.

By the time Kylo could regain his balance, the green blade strode towards his face without warning. By the time he raised up his saber, Mira had already cut into the helmet, only to be stopped before reaching her opponent's skull beneath it.

For a moment it seemed like they reached a stalemate. Mira kept her eyes on Kylo, focusing all her anger and desperation on the blade. If she could push it only a few inches further, the Knight of the First Order would be no more.

She wanted to take a step ahead, so it would help to breach the gap, but it was too late.

The next moment, seemingly impossible force grabbed Kylo, pushing him to the door. The knight dropped to the floor unconscious, the tri-blade rolled out of his hand, only to be stopped by Kyle's foot.

She was shocked to see him between them. In the heave of the fight, she forgot about him almost completely.

"Not bad, Mira, not bad at all," Kyle nodded. "How do you counter this trick anyway?"

"Never seen it before," she shook her head.

Kyle nodded, and started off towards Rey. As he took the unconscious child into his arms, Mira shot another glance at Thrawn. The hologram watched them with undisputed attention, analysing every movement of their fight.

"It's over, Thrawn, you can go back with that ancient rust bucket of yours to what's left of your Empire," Mira darted. He could only hurt Thrawn with words, thus she used those freely.

"Over?" Thrawn frowned. "From where I stand, it seems like this only poses a minor setback to an incredibly successful plan. The New Jedi Order is almost completely eradicated, the head of the First Order will soon follow, not to mention that his apprentice lies at your mercy. Which is quite vague, as I imagine. As things stand, I merely need another subject, and I will be able to continue my experiment. Do you think you will be lucky enough to stop me again?" he asked with an expressionless face. "By my estimation, you and the remainder of the Jedi will be all dead by then," he added, then the hologram disappeared from the room.

"Snoke…" Kyle broke the unfolding silence. "Luke must have been trying to stop him."

"And if he is Tenebrae, then he will get to Rey anyway," she concluded. If that ever happens, Luke would never be able to fight her. Even if he _could_ , it would completely break him.

"So we are going?" Kyle asked.

Mira nodded, and started off towards Kylo's unconscious body.

"What are you doing?" he asked as she strode past him.

"I'm finishing what you started," she was ready to ignite her lightsaber – only to be stopped by a hand on her shoulder.

"This is exactly what Thrawn wants," Kyle said calmly, as if she was not standing above the man who almost completely eradicated the New Jedi Order.

"I don't care," Mira stared at him with anger.

"It won't make it any better," Kyle continued. "Just look back at the surgeons. Did that change anything?"

"It didn't," she answered, shaking her head.

After a deep breath, she put the weapon away, and started off towards the exit. Kyle followed her with haste. If they wanted to stop Luke, they had to reach him yesterday.

* * *

It took several minutes for Kylo to regain his consciousness. By the time that happened, both of his opponents were gone. Once he stood up from the ground, he hit the wall with his fist in order to ease his anger, shattering many fingers on its surface.

"The wall is a tedious opponent. If you are to gain some ground against it, I suggest using your lightsaber," Thrawn broke the silence, standing in the observatory with an expressionless face.

"You let them leave with the kid," Kylo answered.

"Quite the contrary. While you failed utterly at your objective, I merely decided to use the new circumstances to my advantage. The rift between the remaining Jedi is far larger than I expected. Yet some form of unison still remains within them."

"So they will aid Luke against my master," Kylo nodded.

"With the vessel out of our control, I urged them to do the opposite. They are to prevent Luke from killing Snoke, which would both prevent a useless shift of power between Tenebrae's flesh puppets, and elevate the rift between the Jedi to an unprecedented level," he stated.

"If my master lives, he will kill me," Kylo snapped, knowing very well the consequences of his actions.

"I already lured your flagship with considerable reinforcements to the system. From his perspective, it might seem as you were engaging my forces. Just as a good puppet would do," he explained. "Besides, the possible gains surely outweigh the risks by far. The growing rift within The New Jedi Oder might lead to an unexpected change in its structure. The Order itself might even disband in its entirety, replacing it with something far more useful against our mutual foe."

"So what? You would just throw me away like that?" he darted. Even if everything goes as planned, it would be incredibly difficult to convince Snoke about the _nobility_ of his actions. "What kind of ally are you?"

"I'm not," Thrawn stated. "Stabbing my associates in the back stands far from me. I persuaded the Jedi to spare you, and granted you an opportunity to leave this place without fearing from your master. But as soon as your ships arrive, my generosity comes to an end. From that moment, you will be a foe just like any other."

Kylo froze. They were in this together, and while Thrawn didn't stab him in the back, he did betray him in every other degree.

"Why?" he asked a moment later.

"As I told you, our allegiance came out of necessity, and not of mutual interests. Now that we no longer require each other's expertise, there is no reason for us to continues our cooperation," he answered. "May the best commander win."

The hologram disappeared, and Kylo knew, if he was about to survive, he needed every advantage he could get.

* * *

 _Thank you for reading this chapter! I hope you enjoyed it as much as I enjoyed writing it! :)_

 _Don't forget to leave some feedback ;)_


	11. Chapter 11

**Chapter XI:**  
Shattered Alliance

After Kyle and Mira left the building, it was a shock to see the facility's door open above their heads. There was little time to wonder why it happened. They had a mission to do, and thus they rushed to the _Moldy Crow_ waiting for them in front of the complex, and took off with it within the first possible moment.

As they emerged from the facility's giant doors, they expected numerous TIE fighters to swarm towards them. But there were none. The _Chimaera_ was ascending fast over the horizon, and all the other ships seemed to disappear from orbit as well. Thrawn was expecting some company – which could give them the perfect opportunity to escape with Rey.

Seeing there was no need for a gunner, Mira rushed back to the makeshift-infirmary at the back of the ship. She checked out the unconscious child, quickly realizing that Rey was doing far better than she did. She took a bandage to her hand, and trying to suppress the pain, she started off to the cockpit.

"What are you doing here?" Kyle asked, as he continued their ascension. The Remnant could still chase after them at any given moment; they both knew that very well.

"Not in the mood for the guns," Mira answered, raising the broken limb.

Kyle nodded. The interface wasn't planned for someone with only one functional hand.

Mira sat down beside him. They were leaving from the atmosphere; gorgeous fire erupted around the cockpit. The flames could easily kill them both, if the hull would fail before them. Still, they were somewhat incredible nevertheless.

"I hope the others are okay," Kyle broke the silence a moment later.

"Luke should be fine, the others…" Mira gave out a sigh. "I can feel Ariss, she is in distress. Not from pain, or suffering, it's like the whole world had gone crazy around her."

"It did," Kyle nodded. "We gotta be a lot more careful after this."

"Actually," Mira answered, but quickly fell silent. This wasn't the time to continue their conversation. It wasn't the time to talk about anything at all. Something was coming, she had no idea about what was it, but this was hardly the end of the fight for Jeddha.

"What?" Kyle asked, tilting his head towards her.

"Never mind," she shook her head.

"You can tell me, they are doing an awful good job at keeping their distance from us," he answered, pointing towards the sensors. He was right, for some reason, every single imperial vessel kept their distance from them.

The fire from the window disappeared, showing the darkness of space ahead of the ship. The _Chimaera_ and the two Victory-class Star Destroyers were heading towards the other side of the planet. Only a dozen fighters escorted them – probably all that's left after their recent encounters.

"I don't fit for a Jedi, I never did," Mira admitted, and gave out a sigh. It was a relief to say it out loud. She called herself a Gray Jedi numerous times, and often did the exact opposite of what a Jedi should do, but she never managed to say the words out loud before. "I think it's time for me to go my way after this."

"So you are leaving us?" Kyle asked. He didn't seem shocked. He had probably seen it from a mile away based on what went down on Jeddha.

"If I leave, so does Ariss," she added, knowing her _offspring_ 's mindset.

"I guess, we will have to manage without her too," Kyle answered, searching for the right words. "Don't worry, we will be fine. It's not the first time Luke has to rebuild everything from scratch, remember?"

"I hope so," she nodded, and decided to go on with the proposition. "I aim to start something new."

"What do you mean?" he asked.

"I was trying to act as a proper Jedi ever since I was fifteen, I did that for a reason. I want the galaxy to be safe, I want myself and Ariss to be safe, and I always acted to prevent a disaster when I had the chance. But most of the time, I was just playing soldier, and this is not something I want to do anymore."

"We are not playing soldiers," Kyle answered firmly.

"What about the Clone Wars? Or the Rebellion? Or the Old Republic?" she asked in quick succession. She gathered so many examples in her mind, it was impossible to say them all under one breath. "Or even before the Old Republic?"

"Someone has to stop the bad guys before they hurt the good folks," Kyle answered.

"That's what soldiers do. Jedi should be maintaining the balance, not mopping up potential threats to the New Republic. We should act only when the balance in endangered, just as we did with Tenebrae."

"Snoke is Tenebrae," Kyle answered.

"Right now, he is just a man who wants power, just like every petty warlord or slaver out there. What he does has nothing to do with the balance. What he did back then, during the Old Republic, was the real threat. That was something that had to be stopped. This? Not so much."

"He didn't appear out of thin air. He made his own empire first, and then some. One small thing becomes something greater, and at the end, it seriously fracks something up, unless there is someone to stop them. That's why we are _playing soldiers_. From this point of view, you could have let Rey die, since it had nothing to do with the balance.

"And why did he kidnap Rey in the first place?" Mira raised her voice. "Why did they even strike at us?"

"Because that's what they do," Kyle shrugged.

"He did it because he knew we would intervene. The First Order knew we would be their enemies when they come for the New Republic, so they mopped us up. Thrawn knew we would try to stop him when he tries to give a new body for Tenebrae, so he massacred an entire settlement just to distract us. We don't stop aggression, we are the ones who create it. We are centered around it, drawn to it, like it's the essence of our very existence."

"Okay, let's assume we are just bringing everything upon ourselves? Who will stop the First Order, if not us? Who will stop Thrawn for the matter? The New Republic?" he asked in disbelief. If history had shown them anything, it was the Republic's utter inability to hold its own against any kind of threat – let alone Tenebrae.

"They could, if we weren't protecting them all the time. Why would they maintain a powerful army, if there is one already? An army of devoted Force-users who would do everything to protect their overlords for free. This is what the Jedi has become. I have no means to be part of it anymore. I wasted enough of my life playing soldier as it is."

"Okay, then you go, and do your own thing. How would it be better then what we do?" he asked with anger in his voice.

"First of all, we…" she answered, but she was interrupted by the appearing ships.

The Resurgent-class Star Destroyer arriving before them raised his guns towards Thrawn's fleet. Two other ships emerged from hyperspace, their main guns opened fire at the _Chimaera_ with haste, the two Victory-class Star Destroyers quickly engaged with them in order to relieve the flagship. For a moment it seemed the First Order had the upper hand – then additional ships emerged from hyperspace.

It was an entire imperial attack group: five Star Destroyers, and countless smaller craft, opening fire at the trio of Resurgent-class Star Destroyers within an instant. As the giants pounded each other with powerful shots, the _Chimaera_ slowly turned to its side, and engaged the First Order with its escort.

"We will talk about it later," Mira broke the silence of the unfolding battle. Dozens of fighters clashed with each other in the distance, carefully avoiding the brilliant light of turbulaser fire exchanged by the giants. A pair of fighters were caught off guard by a blazing shot, and evaporated in the blackness.

The fight for Jeddha was far from over. Mira had no delusions about who would win, but she knew the First Order wouldn't give up easily.

"I don't think so," Kyle shook his head, and jumped into hyperspace with the ship.

She was surprised to see the blue blaze of hyperspace in the window. They had no reason to take part in the battle, but it was surprising to see Kyle leaving everything behind with haste.

"So, where did we left off?"

* * *

For the first time in a long time, the _Raddus_ was going to battle. Ariss and Ahsoka were surprised to hear that the New Republic was willing to aid their counterattack, but Luke knew that not all of the New Republic was consolidated by blind pacifists. The First Order bombed a New Republic world, decimated the New Jedi Order and murdered countless New Republic soldiers on board of one of their cruisers. While most fleet officers were still against a counterattack, some of them were willing to go to battle over the matter – even if that meant breaking away from the New Republic, and acting as their own military group.

In the end, the _Raddus_ and four small cruisers had joined the strike group. It wasn't a large fleet, let alone something that could win the war against the First Order, but it was enough for a quick strike. And that was all that was needed to get Snoke.

As the fleet had launched to hyperspace from Hosnian Prime, Luke stood on the bridge, observing the illuminating blue light with an expressionless face. Snoke had to die, if the Jedi were to be continued, there was no way to avoid this encounter.

However, getting to him still presented quite a challenge.

"I don't get it, Master Jedi," Admiral Khoris spoke up, breaking the constant noise culminated by the terminals on the bridge and the roaring engines at the back of the ship. "If we are to take control of their base of operations, we should have a lot more ships and personnel than this. Or you expecting Leia to do something while we are away?" he asked. As most commanders, he didn't come here because of the excellence of Luke's plan, but merely to do something against a danger that his own government chose to foolishly ignore.

"We don't have to win," Luke shook his head. "We only have to get their attention. Once we are back with the _Reaver_ , you are safe to return to New Republic space. They are not ready to launch a full scale war against us, not yet, so they won't dare to chase us there."

Ahsoka and Ariss stood next to her on the bridge. They both wanted to say something, however they decided to keep it for themselves. The time to win the debate had passed long ago.

"And how exactly we want to get their attention, when they will know that you are going for the Supreme Leader?" Khoris asked. With the little value the First Order had seen in its own troops, they would rather sacrifice an entire fleet than to risk Snoke's life.

"With a full-scale orbital bombardment," Luke answered. "The _Raddus_ has the guns, and the other ships can take care of the smaller craft trying to stop it. The main building is surely to be shielded, but even that runs out of energy at one point."

"There are millions of people living on that planet. The shield won't protect them all, and we can't hope to shoot with one hundred percent accuracy. In such scales, I'm afraid it will be impossible to avoid civilian losses," Khoris objected.

"We either kill Snoke now, or he will be the one killing the New Republic. You may see that a few thousand civilians are a terrible loss, but it is nothing compared to what the First Order would do with the galaxy.

"I understand," Khoris nodded.

"This is not us." Ahsoka objected. "The Jedi are nothing like this."

"I know, Ahsoka," Luke answered. "I know there should be another way… But there isn't. The First Order will be coming for us soon, and if we don't do this..."

"Then we will figure something out," Ariss added. "If we…"

"There is no if," Luke shook his head. "Maybe, if the Temple had survived, then… They have ours backs against the wall. We either do this, or we get to watch how they burn down the New Republic. We can't let that happen."

"I know," Ahsoka nodded in disbelief. "I just thought we are better than this."

"If we win, we soon shall be," Luke nodded.

"And what if we lose?" Ariss asked.

"Then I guess it's not going to matter much who we were, or what we did. The Jedi will simply cease to be, alongside with the New Republic."

* * *

 _Thank you for reading this chapter! I hope you enjoyed it as much as I enjoyed writing it! :)_

 _Don't forget to leave some feedback ;)_


	12. Chapter 12

**Chapter XII:**  
Assault

Hell broke loose above the remote planet of Dressel. The arrival of the New Republic fleet was completely unexpected by the First Order. By the time their forces engaged the enemy, the attackers already commenced the orbital bombardment. The _Raddus_ rained death from the sky, obliterating entire cities with its vicious salvos. Thousands have died on the surface, and the death count was growing by the second.

Surrounded by a circle of fiery buildings, Snoke's crude palace stood tall under its mighty shield. The _Raddus_ tried everything to destroy it, shooting dozens of red plasma shots on its surface, but the shield held, and the reinforcement came soon after.

A Resurgent-class Star Destroyer opened fire on the _Raddus_. And as the two giants clashed with each other above the horizon, those few who were under the shield were able to get a few minutes of relief. But only for so long.

At the edge of the transparent field, a lone wanderer appeared before the stormtroopers guarding the approach. The soldiers raised their guns towards the intruder, and as the mysterious figure ignored their threats, they resulted to pulling the trigger. Most guns jammed or broke for good, and the shots coming from the rest had never reached their targets. As the two blazing shots approached the wanderer, the brilliant lights of two lightsabers broke the darkness of the night, deflecting the shots with deadly precision.

"Come on, get your Jedi," Ahsoka said with a vicious smile on her face.

The stormtroopers tried to shoot her once more, but none of their weapons obeyed their commands. The guards exchanged looks, and as they stood idly before her, Ahsoka made a run for it from the fools.

"Get her!" they yelled, and launched themselves after the Jedi.

The chase was short, but it proved to be more decisive than ever. Dozens of soldiers abandoned their posts in the hurry, accompanied by two of the most modern walkers in the vicinity. Only a few of those who remained in the position could spot the light-corvette on approach, and they were too late as well.

The _Reaver_ obliterated the walkers on the ground, then it turned its rage against the troopers. Ahsoka activated her lightsaber for a moment, only to realize how little sense she made with her action. Dead, burnt, mutilated bodies lay before her, and once again, the _Reaver_ 's guns left no survivors.

It took a second or two for the frigate to turn towards her, and release the docking ramp in front of her. Ahsoka jumped on board. Her mission was over – at least for now.

"You okay?" Ariss asked, as she raised the ship's nose to the sky.

The propulsion systems ceased to work for a moment, almost causing them to fall on the planet's surface.

"No, I'm not," she said, making her way to the bridge. "This is the last time I do this, and don't tell me you fell otherwise."

"I won't," Ariss shook her head, then she turned her attention back to the unfolding battle.

* * *

The entrance to the palace was guarded by two red-coated guards. For the most, they would prove to be a deadly challenge, but for some, they meant nothing but a swift practice of concentration. When the guards recognized the approaching Jedi, they knew, there was nothing they could do.

Luke approached them with fire in his eyes. He sensed the fear in the guards, nesting itself in every corner of their body. They raised their weapons – despite the growing desperation –, but Luke didn't reach for his lightsaber. He walked up the stairs, slowly, and as the guards would attack, he crushed their bones with a single thought.

The guards dropped dead on the floor, and the door opened with a hissing sound. Guards and stormtroopers engaged the Jedi on the following corridor, only to be eliminated with almost no effort from their opponent.

One corridor opened itself after the other, only to be followed by another entrance, far larger than the others. The guards before it were more vigilant then any he had seen, yet they fell to the floor just as the same. He looked down on them, then he raised his hand to split the thick metal frame.

The door opened on its own.

Snoke stood tall on the crimson chamber, keeping his lightsaber firmly in his enormous hands, surrounded by the dead bodies of guards and common soldiers. Luke stopped in front of his greatest foe.

"They had nothing to do with what is about to happen. Why shall they be here?" Snoke broke the silence. The three meters tall, brown haired alien stepped closer to Luke, keeping a firm grasp around the hilt.

"Why keep them?" Luke asked.

"For the grandeur," Snoke answered. "You should know more than anyone what it means. Only you were foolish enough to depend on this filth. Even love them. You should be thankful for me to remove them. Mara was a worm compared to you, so was your child."

Luke ignited its lightsaber, only to be surrounded by laughter.

"Look at you, you got so attached to the vermin you would even die for them. And for what?" he asked. "We are the masters of our creed, we inhibit all the power we would ever require. Why share power, when we can rule it yourself?"

"Because I believe in those who stood before us. That's the issue, for the both of us, we live, and die, just like everyone else," Luke answered. He heard footsteps in the distance, only to be followed by the hissing of the closing doors and loud thuds.

Snoke wanted to wage this fight alone.

"Death," Snoke said, and laughed for a moment. "What does that mean for the likes of us?"

"You shall soon find out," Luke answered, raising his lightsaber.

As an answer, red plasma brightened the room. The thick, crude blade was far larger than the one carried by Luke. But that mattered only a little for them both. All swords were only as good as the one behind them.

"So that's all you come here to do?" Snoke asked. "You risk all your vermin just to cause me pain, and you call yourself better than me?"

"You took something from me, now I take something from you. As simple as it is."

"Then try it, Jedi," Snoke answered, raising the lightsaber for an attack.

Luke took a deep breath, and charged towards his opponent. The two foes met near the center of the room, striking each other with seemingly impossible force. The two blades collided with a hissing sound, Snoke pushed his opponent back, only for Luke to leap to the side. He was old, yet the Force lived strong in him, granting him nearly unnatural agility.

As soon as he flanked his opponent, Luke cut into Snoke's flesh with the brilliant blade.

Snoke didn't make a sound as the plasma cut into his leg. He turned around, neglecting the pain, and kicked Luke to the other side of the room.

Luke held his blade down on the floor, cutting deep into to metal to stop himself before reaching the end of the room. By the time he got back on his feet, Snoke charged it him with anger, cutting viciously towards him with the lightsaber.

He leaned back with seemingly impossible speed, cutting Snoke on the side in response. For a second, it seemed as he cut a good nerve, then the Supreme leader punched towards him with his free hand.

Luke leapt away from the punch, then took a step back, avoiding the lightsaber strike towards him. As the red blade swept through the air, he struck at the giants head, nearly splitting his skull with the plasma's undeniable heat.

Snoke counterattacked at the last possible moment, kicking him to the wall in the room's metallic edge.

As Luke jumped up from the ground, he made no attempt for another attack.

"Impressive," Snoke nodded, his remaining hair was burning up on the top of his head. He made no attempt at extinguishing them. The body itself had no meaning to the mighty Tenebrae, Luke knew that more than anyone else.

"Don't worry, I'm just getting started."

* * *

The _Moldy Crow_ arrived to Dressel at the height of the battle. A Resurgent-class Star Destroyer glided the sight of the mighty cruiser, unleashing deadly salvos on the _Raddus_. Green turbolaser shots splattered against its shields, accompanied by a dozen more shots in response.

A cruiser caught itself between the giants, only to escape them with a burnt hole in its hull.

Mira looked at the maimed ship with awe, then her glance fell to the surface, still at siege by the _Raddus_ and its mighty cannons.

"What is he doing?" Kyle asked beside her.

"What they always do," Mira gave out a sigh. She wanted to return to their previous argument, just to remind him about why she was about to leave them.

As she opened her mouth, half a dozen TIE fighters broke from the battlegroup towards them. The newest, deadliest fighters, manned by the best of the First Order.

"You can handle the gun right?" Kyle asked within an instant.

"I can try," she nodded, glancing down on the broken hand.

"Then why don't you do just that?"

* * *

 _Thank you for reading this chapter! I hope you enjoyed it as much as I enjoyed writing it! :)_

 _Don't forget to leave some feedback ;)_


	13. Chapter 13

**Chapter XIII:**  
Revenge

By the time they reached the surface, the city was burning in flames. Kyle flew through the shield, and – in their surprise –, they were quickly followed by the _Reaver_. The two ships landed near the palace with a loud thud, pointing their docking ramps towards the stairway.

As Mira left the ship, she hoped to see everyone she left behind in Odessen; however there were only two figures coming out of the _Reaver_. Still, a joyful smile came to her face as she glanced at Ariss. The young woman approached her with tears in her eyes, hugging her with her slander arms.

"Don't leave me again, you hear me?" Ariss raised her voice a bit.

"No promises," Mira answered, and turned her glance to Ahsoka. "The others are on the _Raddus_ , right?"

No answer came to the question.

"Where are the others?" Kyle asked instead of her.

"We are all that's left," Ahsoka answered.

"What about Mara?" Kyle asked.

The togruta shook her head in silence.

Mira expected Katarn to burst out in rage, but he did no such thing. He went pale, and began to shook his head violently. Mira wanted to calm him, but there were no words that could ease the pain.

"Luke is in there," Ahsoka continued. "He lost his mind after they took Mara," she explained, trying to figure out why did they let Luke go this far out of his way. "We tried to do something, but Khoris followed him, and…"

"It's okay, we will deal with them," she nodded, and turned back to Kyle. "Come on, we still have a job to do."

"I know," Kyle nodded, stopping for a moment.

"What about Rey?" Ariss asked a moment later, letting go of Mira. She must had felt her presence in the ship. Hence the question was more about their immediate actions then her whereabouts.

"You should keep watch, we don't know what Snoke could do to any of you," Mira answered after a moment of thinking.

"You got it," Ariss nodded.

"Then shall we?" Mira asked, pointing towards the entrance with her good hand.

Ahsoka nodded instantly, and went forward, Kyle followed soon afterwards. Mira took a glance back to Ariss, who strode towards the _Reaver_ , and continued her way inward.

Dead stormtroopers and red-coated guards paved the way to the battleground. Some were crushed to death by brute force, others simply died without any trace of harm. For a moment, she looked at them in dismay, then she heard the vicious cries of the battle coming from the inner chamber.

She glanced at the others, and began to run as fast as she could. One dreadful corridor followed the other after the other, only to be accompanied by a thick security door. She tried to use the Force to shut it open, but at no avail.

She took a deep breath, and tried again – this time with the others. The three of them could open it – but barely –, only to see the devastation and the horror inside the chamber.

Luke fought a vicious battle against the one they knew as Snoke. The Sith launched vicious rays of lightning out of his hand, colliding with Luke's bare hands. Both men shouted at the other in their desperate grasp of power, tormenting each other for a time that seemed an eternity for the both.

Snoke glanced at Mira, only to be zapped by the lightning directed back to him by Luke. The Sith hit the wall within the blink of an eye, his bones shattered on the surface, his body was still tormented by the lightning. By the time the storm reached its end, the Supreme Leader was nothing more than the smoking shadow of himself. A weak, crippled husk, fit for no one – let alone for the mighty Tenebrae.

Mira strode through the room, she knew exactly what Luke was about to do. The Jedi aimed a horizontal attack at Snoke – only for his blade to be countered by Mira's lightsaber.

"Enough!" she yelled at him.

Luke turned at glance at her. From his point of view, Mira was good as dead.

And for a moment neither of them knew what Luke was going to do.

Then Kyle broke the silence.

"What are you doing? Get away from her!" he raised her voice, grapping his lightsaber threateningly in his hand.

Luke finally came to his senses, and deactivated the saber in his hand.

Mira glanced at Snoke, then took a step back, just to be sure.

"I found Rey, she is alright," Mira said. She knew this was the only thing that could calm him.

"You found her?" Luke asked, not knowing anything about the events unfolding at the other side of the galaxy.

"Thrawn took her, but she is safe now. She is waiting for you in the ship," Mira answered. She calmed down a bit, these words would be enough in themselves for any parent.

"Then why stop me?" he asked, fear, anger and relief mangled in his mind.

"Because he wants Rey to be his next host," she snapped. "I know it sounds..."

"You can't lie to me," Luke answered. "I see that you are saying the truth," he added with a grin on his face. He looked down at Snoke, and spat at him.

The Dark Lord gave out a laugh.

"So the pawns ruin it all," he answered, only to be silenced by a kick in the face.

Luke kicked him a few times more. He stopped only when he was satisfied with the result.

"Good luck inhibiting that body," Luke said, although he doubted Snoke was still awake to hear his words. He glanced at back the others afterwards, took a deep breath, and began to continue. "I didn't want this to end this way."

"Yes, you did," Ahsoka answered.

Luke opened his mouth for an answer, but he was quickly cut off by the togruta.

"Don't say a word," she warned him. "I'm done with you, and with your so called _Jedi Order_ ," she added, and turned away from him.

Luke looked at Ahsoka for a moment, then turned back to Mira.

"We were supposed to be peacekeepers, not your private army," she said sharply, before Luke could say anything.

"How else would you stop the First Order, huh?" Luke raised his voice, pointing at Snoke's body.

"Maybe they are not meant to be stopped," Mira answered.

"What are you talking about?" he asked with rage.

"I will tell you on the way out," she darted. "We have a run to make," she added, and strode off towards the exit.

Luke and Kyle followed him after a moment of silence.

* * *

By the time the _Moldy Crow_ and the _Reaver_ broke through the atmosphere, the New Republic was already on the retreat. Once the two ships hastily docked with the next-to-crippled _Raddus_ , the enormous ship ignited its engines, and sent them to hyperspace with a dying roar.

Most ships managed to escape, the fourth cruiser was the only one that didn't make it.

The First Order didn't follow them. The _Raddus_ almost had to be abandoned – and if not for Kuat's dedicated engineers, it would surely have been scrapped. The time in the docks gave some time for the team to think through their future decisions.

Mira explained her plan to the others, then Luke debriefed them about his future plans as well. The team was surprised to hear what he had to say, but they ultimately accepted it. After all: it was the only logical step to make.

After the third day of the battle, Luke stood near the infirmary, where Rey was prepped for the intervention. Mira stopped next to him on the corridor, quietly watching the young girl thoroughly examined by the doctors. She sat before them happily, not knowing anything about what was about to happen to her. Sometimes, she looked back at her father, and he smiled at her briefly in pretension.

"You should say something before they do it," Mira broke the silence.

"I don't know what to say," Luke admitted.

They watched her quietly for a moment. Luke looked at Mira a few times, took a deep breath, then let out a question.

"So your decision is final?"

"Not just my decision," she answered. "There were countless Gray Jedi before, some are still among us. It's time for us to have our own Order, where we can watch out for the balance."

"You think it will make a difference?" he asked. "You know how powerful they are. That's why the Jedi intervene at the first possible chance."

"We will a find way," she nodded.

"I suppose all the others are with you on this."

"Ariss and Ahsoka are, Kyle wants to go his own way. He was always one of a kind," she answered, and looked back at Rey. She had never seen a girl so happy before a surgery of this magnitude. "What about you two? Any chance you changed your mind?"

"You were right about Tenebrae," Luke shook his head. "If we kill him, he goes to Rey, and he goes back with her to the First Order. We cannot let that happen."

"She won't remember anything after this. Not even her name."

"If she can so much think of that name, Snoke will find her. And that crippled body of his won't live forever," Luke added, and gave out a sigh. "As for me, I failed as father and a master alike. There is no place for me among the Jedi."

"You are the last though."

"Perhaps it's time for the Jedi to end."

Mira nodded. The door opened on the corridor a moment later, she recognized Kyle merely by his footsteps.

"You didn't tell him, did you?" Kyle asked as he walked near them.

"I thought I might leave it for you," Mira admitted.

"What are you talking about?" Luke asked, although at this point, there was little doubt about what he was about to say.

"I'm afraid the Jedi are far from ending."

* * *

 _Thank you for reading this chapter! I hope you enjoyed it as much as I enjoyed writing it! :)_

 _Don't forget to leave some feedback ;)_


	14. Chapter 14

**Chapter XIV:  
** Downfall

By the time the surgery was complete, Mira wanted nothing more than starting a new life. But there was one last mission to do beforehand. The saddest of them all.

"How much?" Mira asked; she was the only one who was able to stomach the question.

Rey looked up to her in terror, but seemingly none of them paid attention. In reality, this was the only way to hold themselves together until the end of it. This was the last thing they were to do in the name of Luke Skywalker.

"She's young, but she is pretty," the slaver said, then cleared some of the sand from his shoulder. "Let's say five-hundred creds, huh?"

"It's a deal," Mira nodded. In any other case, she would have bargained for a much better price, possibly over seven hundred, but now she just wanted to be done with it.

"You got it then," the slaver nodded, and got the payment out of his bag.

She let go of Rey with a deep sigh, and took the bag from the slaver.

"Mom, what are they doing to me? Mom?" Rey cried out as the slaver grabbed her arm. She called them as parents ever since she woke up on their requisitioned ship. It wasn't surprising – she knew nothing about Luke or Mara –, but it made the mission all the more difficult.

They had to do it, Mira reminded herself. They had to send Rey to a place where no one would dare to look for her, otherwise Tenebrae could find her after he loses his host. At first, she thought about Tatooine or Nar Shaddaa, but they were too famous by now. Anyone with any knowledge about the Jedi would look there first, and she had no doubt about Tenebrae's ability to sweep entire planets.

Rey kept asking questions, only to be denied of answers.

"Why sell her anyway?" the slaver asked, sensing how much they were shaken by the event. "She could be good help at smuggling, she is small you know, can get to places."

"We need to get some booze," Kyle answered instead of Mira, relieving her some of the pain.

"Well, you can get plenty from this," the slaver nodded with a wide smile on his face. It wasn't unusual for someone to do this, not in this nameless corner of the galaxy. "Don't forget to look after that ship of yours. It's shiny, worth a lotta money."

"We won't," Mira said, and turned around, trying not to focus on the yelling kid. "Let's go," she glanced at Kyle, and went on her way to the ship.

It would take a long time to forget this day, but Rey was finally safe, and that was all that mattered. One day, Tenebrae would be stopped, letting Rey to be herself again. And that day may come sooner than anyone would have thought before the emergence of the Gray Jedi Order.

* * *

The _Chimaera_ 's cannons pounded the Resurgent-class Star Destroyer with all their might. Two Victory's quickly joined the effort, alongside with half of the remaining imperial Attack Group. The five Star Destroyers took the Resurgent apart within minutes, yet, by the time the ship's dark body shattered into two, the _Finalizer_ managed to jump into hyperspace behind it.

Kylo Ren paid a high price for their escape: only one-third of his fleet survived the battle, while Thrawn's forces lost even less than it was initially expected. With the First Order concentrating on Starkiller base, the Chiss had high doubts about their sufficient replacement.

The battle of Jeddha was won.

"We shouldn't have let them escape," Pellaeon shook his head beside him.

They didn't. If not for the officer's sacrifice, Kylo would have died here, and Pellaeon had to know this as well. Thus, only one topic was left that could support the question.

"If we were to close the facility on them, Luke kills Snoke, and the First Order is done for. By my estimation, this is the last thing we would have wanted out of this situation," Thrawn answered coldly, still gazing at the burning wreckages drifting before them.

"But that was exactly what you wanted, sir. Imprison Tenebrae, decimate the Jedi, and decapitate the First Order with a simple order," Pellaeon objected, luminous to the gravity of the situation.

"And what have we gained instead?" Thrawn asked. "The New Jedi Order is not decimated, but done for. By the newest reports, Luke is now an exile, and the remaining Jedi concentrate their efforts solely on Tenebrae and the others like him."

"Great, so we switched one Order to the other," Pellaeon objected.

Two burning chunks of debris collided with one other in the distance, catching their attention for a moment.

"I'm afraid the Gray Jedi care little for the rulers. Their only aim is to stop those who disturb the balance of their precious Force. Thanks to their efforts, imprisoning Tenebrae is now their responsibility, and not ours, and our invasion can commence without any of them trying to stop us," Thrawn answered, explaining the reasons behind his decision. "This is surely worth the sacrifice of pushing a mere a button, don't you think?"

"What of the First Order, sir? We might never get rid of them," Pellaeon objected. "If they finish Startkiller base…"

Thrawn interrupted him.

"Then they fire it on the New Republic, only to realize that victory still comes with a great a price. After the initial assault, an invasion to the Core would follow, decimating the forces of both opponents. By the time one of them overcomes the other, their forces will be exhausted and few in numbers. There will be no possibility for them to counter the fleet we are assembling on Yaga Minor, and without further aid from the Order, victory would be all but assured from the very start," he explained, taking a few steps towards the window. "I have to admit, it was tempting to follow through with the mission, but it would inevitably leave the New Republic on the table, alongside with a handful of Jedi. A strong New Republic paired with the weakened Jedi Order could have proved to be a troublesome opposition. However, a weak galactic government paired with no Jedi represent much more opportunities for the future, don't you think?"

"Yes, sir," Pellaeon nodded, slowly grasping the amount of trouble this change had saved from them. "What are our further orders?"

"We move back to Yaga Minor," he answered, turning partially towards him. "We shall wait until our opponents tire themselves out, then we commence the invasion. The time shall come, when the galaxy bows down once again before the might of the Empire."

* * *

 _Thank you for reading my story all the way through! I hope you enjoyed it as much as I enjoyed writing it! :)_

 _Don't forget to leave some feedback ;)_


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